15 hours ago
MPs have voted narrowly in favour of introducing a proportional representation electoral system, in a move that will almost certainly not change the law but is nonetheless a symbolically significant moment for UK politics.
The vote on a Liberal Democrat bill calling for a PR system for UK parliamentary elections and for local elections in England was passed by 137 votes to 135. It is believed to be the first time the Westminster parliament has backed such a plan.
The measure was introduced as a so-called 10-minute rule bill, which gives MPs that amount of time to make the case for a bill before a vote. Even when these are supported, they almost never become law because they are not allocated more time in the Commons.
The last time PR was voted on by the Commons, in another 10-minute rule bill in 2016, it was defeated by 81 votes to 74.
As well as 62 Lib Dem MPs, 59 Labour backbenchers voted for Tuesday’s bill, including a number of those first elected in 2024. Last month it emerged that dozens of Labour MPs from the 2024 intake had signed up to a parliamentary group calling for the UK to move to a PR system.
Labour’s 2022 annual conference voted overwhelmingly for the party to back a proportional system, after trade unions that had blocked previous motions swung behind the idea. However, while Keir Starmer has previously expressed at least some support for electoral reform, his leadership team has ruled out any immediate change, at least in the first term of a Labour government.
In Tuesday’s vote, 50 Labour MPs opposed the motion, indicating the continued lack of agreement on the issue. None of the government frontbench took part in the vote. All of the Conservatives who voted, 78 of them, opposed the idea, including some frontbenchers.
Sarah Olney, the Lib Dems’ Cabinet Office spokesperson, who introduced the bill, said: “This is a historic day in the fight for fairer votes and I am grateful to all the MPs who backed it. Trust in our political system is broken following years of the Conservative party riding roughshod over standards in public life. Fixing our broken electoral system, introducing fair votes and making sure everyone’s voice matters is the best way to rebuild this trust.”
