Ed Davey urges Burnham to embrace electoral reform
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey is poised to urge Andy Burnham to introduce proportional representation before the next general election, warning that failure to act could render it “too late”, reports BritPanorama.
In a speech at the Institute for Government on Tuesday, Sir Ed is expected to caution that Labour may find itself “powerless to do anything” to alter the voting system once the election has concluded.
He will appeal directly to Mr Burnham to collaborate, asserting that if Mr Burnham is “serious about changing the way we do politics”, then his “door is open” for discussions.
Mr Burnham has previously expressed support for modifying the voting system in parliamentary elections to better mirror the backing parties receive nationally, advocating the replacement of Britain’s first-past-the-post system with a form of proportional representation.
During an Ask-Me-Anything event on social media site Reddit, Burnham stated: “I am a strong supporter of electoral reform, partly because I believe it will enable the change to a more collaborative politics, and one that is less about point-scoring and more about problem-solving.”
He emphasized his aim to persuade his party of the necessity for a manifesto commitment to electoral reform in the next manifesto, echoing suggestions made during his campaign in Makerfield. Labour’s party conference voted to support movement towards a proportional representation system in 2022.
The party’s 2024 manifesto nevertheless prioritised electoral and constitutional reforms focused on extending voting rights to 16 and 17-year-olds and reforming the House of Lords.
On Tuesday, Sir Ed will encourage Mr Burnham to “be bold, be brave” in promoting proportional representation, adding: “And do it now. Don’t wait until it is too late.”
“Don’t wait until after the next election – when you might be powerless to do anything about it.”
Mr Burnham, poised to replace Sir Keir Starmer in Downing Street on July 20 after receiving overwhelming support from Labour MPs, has committed to “rewiring” the British state and reaching out to other parties to cultivate “a more collaborative approach” to politics.
Sir Ed is expected to endorse this pledge in his speech, resonating with Mr Burnham’s critique of a “broken political system”.
He will conclude: “If Andy Burnham is serious about changing the way we do politics, about ending the performative hostility and instead working across Parliament to meet the challenges we face, if he is serious, then my door is open.”
