Having once more rejected Proportional Representation, the House reaffirmed on
Thursday week by a majority of 39—as compared with a bare majority of 1 in Committee—its approval of the Alternative Vote. Unhappily the value of this decision was weakened on Monday, when the House adopted by a majority- of 23 a new and complex Bahama of counting alternative votes, at the suggestion of Major Chapple. Sir Joseph Larmor, who is an opponent of the Alternative Tote, supported Major
Chapple's scheme as being less objectionable than the simple Govern- ment plan, and we may safely conjecture that other Members voted for it in the hope of making the Alternative Vote unpopular and un- workable. The suspicion was confirmed when on Wednesday the House by a majority of 32 rejected Major Chapplc's new schedule, containing the details of his scheme, and thus rendered futile-its decision of two days kefore. In reality, the Alternative Vote is merely a substitute for the Second Ballot, and saves the cost of holding another election. We trust that before the Bill becomes law the original proposal will be restored. Our electoral system -cannot be too simple. In Monday's sitting proxy voting for absent electors was made permanent. In the interests, above all, of our brave merchant seamen, who have too long been virtually ,disfranchised, this change is all to the good.
Previous page
