At its November meeting the Torbay and South Devon GMB branch unanimously backed a motion in favour. This is now to be submitted to the union's 2019 Congress for consideration.
It will read:
Congress recognises that FPTP was previously supported as the most likely voting system to deliver a Labour Government and avoid coalitions; however, politics is changing and the outcomes of elections are less predictable than ever before. The past century has seen far too many decades lost to Tory rule at Westminster when a majority of the country did not vote for this and this has been contrary to the interests of trade unionists.
Further, huge swathes of the UK have been denied a party representative of their choice despite often having a notable vote share in that locality, region or nation. Trade unionists and working people need a voting system in which every vote is equal, and every vote counts the same. It’s time that we abolished a system set up by the establishment to benefit the establishment, and replaced it with a system in which every vote has equal worth and equal power.
We therefore instruct Congress to:
a) adopt a policy in support of proportional representation for all levels of government across the UK. This needs to be a genuinely proportional system and not the Alternative Vote or a variant of it
b) affiliate to the Labour Campaign for Electoral Reform and Make Votes Matter
c) GMB representatives within the Labour Party to use their influence to change party policy to promote fair votes.
d) provide political education to union officers, representatives and lay members in support of proportional representation.
Proposed by : B. Wood (Branch Chair / President)
Torbay and South Devon T28 Branch
It will read:
Congress recognises that FPTP was previously supported as the most likely voting system to deliver a Labour Government and avoid coalitions; however, politics is changing and the outcomes of elections are less predictable than ever before. The past century has seen far too many decades lost to Tory rule at Westminster when a majority of the country did not vote for this and this has been contrary to the interests of trade unionists.
Further, huge swathes of the UK have been denied a party representative of their choice despite often having a notable vote share in that locality, region or nation. Trade unionists and working people need a voting system in which every vote is equal, and every vote counts the same. It’s time that we abolished a system set up by the establishment to benefit the establishment, and replaced it with a system in which every vote has equal worth and equal power.
We therefore instruct Congress to:
a) adopt a policy in support of proportional representation for all levels of government across the UK. This needs to be a genuinely proportional system and not the Alternative Vote or a variant of it
b) affiliate to the Labour Campaign for Electoral Reform and Make Votes Matter
c) GMB representatives within the Labour Party to use their influence to change party policy to promote fair votes.
d) provide political education to union officers, representatives and lay members in support of proportional representation.
Proposed by : B. Wood (Branch Chair / President)
Torbay and South Devon T28 Branch
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