We don't have democracy we have party politics here,
I can't criticise party politics OG as similar systems exist elsewhere and indeed, seem to operate advantageously in a democratic manner.
What I do take exception to is an antiquated electoral system, inherently flawed in that it is gerrymandered in such a way as to satisfy the British aristocracy/monarchy and the very small percentage of the population who own the biggest businesses, most of the land, rented property and the most money.
The net result inevitably brings about the kind of government we have today and have had continuously since 1979. While those in power as a result of the lopsided constituency arrangements will obviously have no desire to revise that situation and bring about change, to claim that it is democracy and represents the will of the people is an utter travesty. Our parliament is nothing less than an amalgam of oligarchy and plutocracy, euphemistically referred to by their media wing as democracy. If you think American politics is all about money, make no mistake, UK politics is every bit as bad, if not worse.
There are 650 parliamentary seats and if you don't understand how that number is arrived at and if you then wonder, as you may, why that is the case, you need to do some research. In the course of that research, you might wish to pay particular attention to the make-up of the boundaries commission - there is more than one - and try to establish if there is anything resembling transparency in their personnel appointments. You may further wonder if those appointees are in any way connected with reality or are simply puppets of the elite.
My view is that all the existing commissions should be abolished and a new body created by way of a cross-party commission, comprising equal numbers of the top 6, 8 or 10 parties in terms of existing seats. Give them two tasks: (1) Abolish the HofL and (2) Re-configure the constituency boundaries in such a way that a proper numerical balance of eligible voters is achieved. This is crucial work and transparency, honesty and accountability are paramount. We have never had that in constituency boundary arrangements before.
Some serious austerity in the parliamentary system would be very welcome for a number of reasons, not least the cost savings that it would bring the taxpayers. The gravy train needs to be brought to a halt and replaced by a one-chamber parliament with each representative responsible for a similar number of constituents, regardless of whether that requires 100, 400 or 800 MPs.
I think it would require a PR voting system in place to ensure a balanced make-up of parliamentary seats. A two-term maximum occupancy before retirement from the role of MP would also make a lot of sense.
The only other alternative I can see is to abolish parliament entirely and force the royals to earn their crust by actually governing and ruling over people as in days of yore.
Tom
