Let's change the law - the Representation of the People Bill MUST scrap First Past the Post

Prime Minister Keir Starmer

Our broken voting system leaves millions without representation. Yet the Representation of the People Bill has no plan to change it.

Britain’s democracy is in crisis. The old two-party system has collapsed. This means power can now be won on a smaller share of the vote than ever in our history. Our elections, described by the Economist as creating “slot-machine politics” no longer reflect public opinion and are leaving more people than ever disenfranchised.

First Past the Post can no longer deliver real mandates - only chaos.

The Bill claims to be about “restoring trust in our democracy”. This could be our best opportunity in decades to do exactly that.

But without scrapping First Past the Post, it won’t come close.

Polling shows that 60% of the public support changing the voting system. Now is the time to get our voices heard.

TAKE ACTION: Tell Keir Starmer that the Representation of the People Bill must scrap First Past the Post and replace it with a proportional system.

To: Prime Minister Keir Starmer
From: [Your Name]

We, the undersigned, are deeply concerned by the Government’s intention to pass a once-in-a-generation bill to “restore trust in our democracy” without addressing our archaic, and dysfunctional voting system.

Britain’s democracy is in crisis. Trust in politics has hit record lows, and turnout at the last general election was among the lowest in our history.

Meanwhile, the growing number of parties attracting significant support has made our election results more unpredictable and less representative than ever before. In 2024, Labour won a landslide majority on only 34% of the vote. In 2029, the next government could achieve the same with even lower levels of public support. In this environment, our voting system no longer enables mandates, it just makes elections a lottery. This would take trust in our political system to dangerous, ever-new lows, and call into question whether it has the authority to govern at all.

The Representation of the People Bill presents the Government with an opportunity to address this. The Government has stated that the Bill aims to “restore trust in our democracy”. We believe that this vital goal cannot be achieved without addressing the elephant in the room: our dysfunctional voting system.

Time and again, First Past the Post delivers distorted results and leaves millions of people without a voice in Parliament. It forces people to vote negatively, to keep out the party they fear the most, rather than for the candidate they truly support. Not since 1935 has it delivered a government that has the backing of the majority of the public.

The UK public is ready for change. Recent polling shows that 60% of the country is in favour of reforming the voting system. It is time for the Government to listen.

That’s why we’re calling on the Prime Minister to include scrapping First Past the Post in the Representation of the People Bill, and replace it with a proportional system: one where seats in Parliament match votes, and where every voice is heard.