THE PROBLEM OF GOVERNMENT [To the Editor of Tim SPECTATOR.]
SIR,—While Sir John Fischer Williams' scheme of proportional
representation as a panacea for our is'excellent in theory, it cannot fail to produce complete chaos in practice. One has only to consider France and Germany, where such a system has been in force, to see the truth of this statement. In Germany, the legislature proved quite -impotent to deal with the crisis, and has been replaced by that violent dictatorship which Sir John Fischer Williams seeks to avoid. In France, the party block system, produced by proportional representation, has lent itself to complete political instability.
Under this system, no party has an absolute majority, and all Ministries are formed from a coalition of the several parties which constitute the centre group of the Chamber. It is unlikely that parties in this country which have even less in common than those in France will come to any permanent agreement. No, a Second Chamber, reformed upon demo- cratic principles would be a far more efficient weapon in fighting the evils of " electoral accidents."—I am, Sir, &c., JOHN FIGGESS. Whitgift School, Croydon.
Previous page
