Rik's Voting Reform Suggestion

1. Every voter gets exactly 1 vote, marked as an X next to a single candidate's name

2. Divide the country into 300 constituencies, the largest having no more than double the no of voters of the smallest. Also, roughly 30 constituencies per region

3. Each constituency elects 2 MPs (senior and junior)

4. To be elected, a candidate must come first or second in the constituency vote

... so far, so boring. Now for the interesting stuff.

5. For every 4000 votes a successful candidate receives, they are awarded 1 parliamentary vote

6. Every party contesting more than 10 constituencies in a region can nominate a regional candidate. Each region shall elect 5 regional MPs

7. In each constituency, where a candidate belongs to a party with a regional candidate, the votes for those candidates not elected are transferred to their regional candidate

8. For successful candidates in each constituency, those votes not counted towards the award of their parliamentary vote are transferred to the regional candidate (eg votes transferred = votes cast - (parliamentary votes awarded * 4000)

9. The 5 regional candidates receiving the most transferred votes are elected.

10. For every 8000 transferred votes, a successful regional candidate receives 1 parliamentary votes.

Advantages:

a. 1 person, 1 (non-transferrable) vote. Simple, neat, clean. Also, the results will be known within hours of the polls closing, and there will still be a link between MPs and their constituencies

b. Few votes are wasted: those votes not used in the constituency are mopped up by the regional candidate

c. The number of MPs elected may not be very proportional, but the number of parliamentary votes allocated will be reasonably accurate: the parties with the highest % vote in a region will receive slightly more votes, and very small parties will not.

d. Independents - not likely to do well in the constituencies, but if they band together to put up a regional candidate they might just have a chance of getting a seat (and vote) in parliament

e. EVERY VOTE COUNTS - an end to this 'marginal seat' nonsense that deprives the rest of us of having a say in elections.