None of the above
By Tony Watts - Editor - 16/06/2009
Well, who got your vote in the Euro and local elections? It didn't take a rocket scientist to realise that Labour was going to get a thrashing. But it was gratifying that our reader survey, which over 1600 of you took part in, was right on the money - right back in April, when you gave your replies - it had predicted a big swing to the Tories... and also to the minority parties.
And when I say right on the money, I mean as opposed to being wrong on the money.
I do think that Labour has got more than their share of the fall out from the expenses scandal. Looked at objectively, they were no worse than the Tories: my mucky films against your moat; my accountancy bills against your pile of manure. Ad nauseam.
Our regular columnist Terry Waite has proposed that - in protest - we have a space on our voting slip to allow us to vote "for none of the above." It's not a totally new idea, but what a brilliant one. Voter participation continues to slide - the locals and European elections had a pitiful turnout of around just one third. I humbly suggest that turnout would double if we'd had a chance to poke a sharp stick in the collective eye of all our politicians by voting for people and policies that don't exist (as opposed to never being there).
Of course, that would have thrown up some interesting situations.
Say 20 of our Euro MPs were elected from the 'None of the Above'
party, they wouldn't (like the other MEPs) have to spend half the week flogging backwards and forwards to Brussels. So no travel expenses. And with no MEPs families to keep in mock employment, no expensive back room staff either. There're the salaries we'd save too - although that's small change in relation to the total bill of keeping an MEP. Soon, every country would be following suit. 200 non- MEPs would form a pan-European movement. In France, in honour of Charles de Gaulle, they would be known as the 'Non of the above'. In Germany, 'Nein of the above' and so on.
They couldn't, of course, form a shadow government - not casting any shadows - but neither would there be a danger of becoming a puppet government. The strings would just dangle about. But think of all the air conditioning costs they'd save in Brussels with that much less hot air to deal with.
And as for what would happen in the UK elections... I'm thinking landslide. Then, on Election Night Special, poor old Paxo would be sat there trying to interview the incoming Prime Minister.
Paxo: "Prime Minister, for the tenth time, are you going to answer any of my questions?"
Empty chair: "..."
You can see where I'm going on this.
But is there a danger of all this anti-politics developing into parliamentary cul de sac, where no-one turns up even to be rude to each other and claim their mileage? I don't think so. The point is that nature hates a vacuum. And empty spaces. So by the next election, there would be a party ready in waiting to give the None of the Above party a run for their money. And I'm the man to lead it.
I've already written the manifesto. I've even designed the logo. It's called the Bring a Bottle Party.
YOU HAVE YOUR SAY
After reading your comments on the EU elections there is one point that stands out. When you examine all the stats the Tories did not gain; their position improved because the labour vote dropped so dramatically. Labour voters did not vote, apart from those who would tick any labour box even if an elephant was standing, although a number of them voted for the smaller parties especially UKIP (which was my selection). A lot of Tory voters also voted for UKIP. Even LibDem voters voted for UKIP.
In my view, this ought to shake up both the main parties. There is a groundswell against them because firstly labour reneged on its promise of a referendum and secondly 'conservatives' are hiding their thoughts on this topic because they know that it splits the party. Ken Clarke is just not going to toe the party line and there are others who will side with him. Already he has started to show his colours and Cameron has his hands full; but he should have realised that when he brought him back onto the front bench!
As long as the Tories fail to sort this out they will lose votes. Perhaps they should split into two parties; aligned but split on the EU. Then the voters could give their verdict. that might even be better than a referendum.
Coming now to the 'none of the above' suggestion I prefer that it should be a second series of boxes with all the candidates names again but a cross in any or all of those boxes would mean a vote against the named candidate. This could better reflect the opinion of voters; the votes for and against would be calculated to give the net figure and the winner would be the one with the highest net vote. Every voter would be able to vote for one candidate and at the same time vote against one or more of all the others. I believe that such a system could be the draw that would bring back the majority of the abstainers. It should also mean that each candidate needed to win votes for him/herself, not just votes for a party.
Any chance of this being introduced?
Peter Bray