There’s a hung parliament in Britain, and the Conservatives are in discussions with the Liberal Democrats about forming a coalition government. Liberal leader Nick Clegg has been clear today that he wants parliamentary reform (or “PR,” as it’s commonly becoming known). Polly Toynbee at the Guardian does a good job explaining what that means, as far as Clegg is concerned:
“Yet again his party won a quarter of the votes but only a 10th of the seats. People minded to vote Lib Dem understood the wicked ways of first past the post, and voted tactically — avoiding a wasted vote where Lib Dems could never win. What else could they do? This is his once-in-a-generation chance to bring in the better politics that is the only point of his party.”
Basically, it’s about getting fair representation in Parliament for the number of votes cast. Britain has been a two-party country for years, with the Liberals failing to make any headway. Now is their chance. But the Conservatives are unlikely to give it to them…meaning they may be more likely to do the deal with Labour.
On the other hand, the majority of the press is pushing for Clegg to do a deal with Conservative leader David Cameron that would make him Prime Minister. The Conservatives won a majority of British votes, so the official line being pushed by Rupert Murdoch’s papers is that to do a deal with Labour would be to ignore the will of the British people. London’s conservative mayor Boris Johnson explains this in simpler terms, by talking about the “meat in the sausage…”
I’d like to see Clegg stick to his guns and call the bluff of the Conservatives. Either way the next 36 hours will be monumental in British politics.
Boris Toynbee?
“Meat in the sausage” and “hung Parliament” is an interesting confluence of phrases, yes?
wow that is fascinating.
What news from the Turkish parliament – did they pass the controversial constitutional reforms at issue?