Labour MP urges Government to establish national commission for electoral reform

Ministers must be “bold” and establish a national commission to help reform the “unrepresentative” voting system used for UK parliamentary elections, according to a Labour MP.

Alex Sobel (Leeds Central and Headingley), who supports proportional representation, said the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system is “not working” and is “desperately in need of an upgrade”.

He said a national commission for electoral reform would act as a “first step” to finding a consensus on the system to be used in future, amid concerns that 85% of MPs were elected by less than 50% of the voters who turned out in 2024.

Under the existing FPTP system, voters select their preferred candidate and the candidate with the most votes wins.

Alternatives include the single transferable vote system in which voters rank candidates in order of preference.

Opening a debate on proportional representation for general elections, Mr Sobel told the Commons: “I want to encourage the Government to be bold and to be honest about how unrepresentative British general elections have become.”

Labour MP Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall and Camberwell Green), intervening, noted turnout at last year’s general election dropped below 60%, adding: “That means two in every five people didn’t even participate. Does this not show that actually we need to change that so more people engage in our democratic system?”

Mr Sobel said voter turnout and engagement should be a “matter of concern” for everyone, adding: “The truth is first-past-the-post is failing on its terms; it’s becoming less and less representative and producing more and more random results, more outliers, more MPs elected on less than 30% of their constituency votes.”

The MP for Leeds Central and Headingley, who secured 50.2% of the vote at the last election, said “record levels of distrust in politics” are being fed by people feeling that they “don’t have a fair say over who speaks for them or how they are governed”.

He said: “That should worry all of us. The Government has a responsibility to face up to those problems and address them before the next general election, starting with the launch of the national commission for electoral reform.”

Addressing last year’s election, Mr Sobel said: “We’re now at an unprecedented situation where 554 MPs, 85% of us here, were elected with less than 50% of the voters who turned out.”

He added: “And 266 MPs, 41%, were elected with less than 40%. There are even a few colleagues who were elected on less than 30% of the vote.

“When most people can see their representation in Parliament doesn’t reflect how they voted, it feeds the all too pervasive sense that Westminster is a distant, unresponsive institution, one that voters have no real voice in.”

Mr Sobel highlighted opinion polls that showed support for proportional representation, adding: “The Prime Minister has made clear that restoring trust in politics is a key priority, calling the fight for trust the battle that defines our age.

“If the Government is to win the battle, it must address our flawed voting system. A voting system it knows is driving distrust and alienation in our politics, a voting system that means millions of people’s votes don’t count, a voting system that most people don’t want to continue with.

“That’s why I urge the Government to take this first step by establishing a national commission for electoral reform, as recommended by the APPG (all-party parliamentary group) for fair elections, which I chair.”

Labour MP Steve Race (Exeter) said he does “not support electoral reform in a pure PR sense” and recognised that the Government’s priorities include stabilising the public finances, growing the economy and rebuilding public services.

He added: “There is much to do that can be fixed to make the current system more democratic and accessible, and I do support (Mr Sobel’s) call for a commission into this issue in order to find a way forward.”

Labour MP Anna Dixon (Shipley) said electoral reform would help restore the public’s trust in politicians.

She said: “I believe that the Government could get on the front foot, show it’s serious about addressing our unrepresentative voting system and stem this rise in disengagement and distrust in politics. We could bring the public with us and rebuild the trust in our democracy.”

But Jas Athwal, Labour MP for Ilford South, said: “PR is not the panacea that everybody is talking about today. A PR system makes it harder for local concerns to be represented and addressed.”

Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Olney asked for the Government to provide parliamentary time for her Elections (proportional representation) Bill to be debated in the Commons.

The Richmond Park MP’s Bill aims to introduce a system of proportional representation for parliamentary elections and for local government elections in England.

For the Conservatives, shadow communities minister Paul Holmes said first past the post acts “as a safeguard against extremism”.

Communities minister Rushanara Ali said: “This Government has no plans to change the voting system for elections to the House of Commons. I’m getting unlikely cheers, I’m not used to having cheers from the main opposition party.

“The first-past-the-post system, while not perfect, provides for – as has been pointed out – a direct relationship between Members of Parliament and their local constituency, and such a change would require a national conversation and a referendum.”