How MPs ‘accidentally’ backed changing the way the UK votes

The election in July left a lot of people wondering exactly how fair the UK’s voting system is.

Labour won a landslide, despite winning fewer votes than they did in 2019 when Jeremy Corbyn’s party was resoundingly defeated by Boris Johnson and the Conservatives.

And now, in an unexpected move, it appears the same MPs voted in at that election also think major changes are needed.

Yesterday, they narrowly voted in favour of a Liberal Democrat motion that would replace the current voting system in England with a version of proportional representation.

The result stunned many people – not least some Liberal Democrats. But it’s unlikely to mean we’re going to alter the way we hold elections any time soon.

Here’s what happened, and what it might mean.

What led up to yesterday’s vote?

The Liberal Democrats have long been in favour of changing the UK’s First Past the Post voting system, which they say is too advantageous to Labour and the Conservatives at the expense of smaller parties.

That view has held firm despite the extraordinary results of the July 4 election, where the party won 72 seats with 600,000 fewer votes than Reform, which won just five.

To demonstrate their support, Lib Dem MP Sarah Olney used a ‘ten minute rule’ motion to call for a new system based on proportional representation – meaning the number of MPs parties get would depend on their vote share.

The ten minute rule gives backbench MPs ten minutes to make their case for a bill to be introduced. It’s rare for these to become law, even when they’re supported by the House of Commons.

When the results came in from the vote afterwards, they were a bit of a surprise: there were 137 votes for the motion, and 135 against. It had passed.

What happens next?

Former Lib Dem leader Tim Farron was among those in the chamber yesterday.

In a tweet, he wrote that it was ‘unsurprising’ he had voted in favour of the motion but added: ‘In somewhat more surprising news, we appear to have won!!’

Naturally, the party leapt on the result, quickly sending out a press release with Olney declaring it a ‘historic day’.

There’s no imminent threat to First Past the Post, though. The vote merely meant that the MPs who were in the chamber at that moment liked the idea of a bill on voting reform.

Sir Keir Starmer said at PMQs today that there would be no debate on proportional representation on government time, as it’s not a Labour policy. It’s unlikely to even make it to the first stage of the legislative process, never mind become law.

But the motion was also backed by 56 Labour MPs, suggesting a strong will within the ruling party to change the way we vote. Previously, top party figures including Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham have also supported the move.

So while we shouldn’t expect a new voting system to be in place by the time the next election rolls around, Tuesday’s vote was symbolically significant and could mark the beginning of a major reshaping of British democracy.

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