Power interests overrule the people

Despite voter consultations showing clear majorities preferring change, three Welsh Councils decide to keep First-Past-the-Post as their voting system.

Powys, Gwynedd (on which we reported three weeks ago) and Ceredigion Councils have all decided to keep the existing discrimatory system over the fairer Single Transferable Vote(STV) system.

Prior to their councillors voting on the issue, each council carried out a public consultation. Many of the questions were dubious and slanted; regardless, the results were clear:

• Gwynedd: 72% in favour of STV
• Ceredigion: 67% in favour of STV
• Powys: 60% in favour of STV

After viewing the results of their consultations, all three Councils subsequently ignored them. They will all stay with First-Past-the-Post: a bitter example of those with power bypassing the will of the people over a fundamental principle of how our democracry is run.

As we reported, in one Council – Gwynedd – councillors voted 45 - 22 in favour of STV (with one abstention). But a 2/3rds vote in favour threshold had been set, so 46 votes were needed to go through; an agonising single vote short.

In Ceredigion, a majority of councillors also voted for change but fell short of the 2/3rds threshold. Multiple councillors who were opposed said that they didn't want Ceredigion acting alone but that it would be different if the Welsh Government introduced STV across all councils in Wales.

The obstacles, set out in the Welsh Government rules for granting Welsh Councils “permissive” powers to change to STV, were always going to be hard to overcome: councils had to vote in favour of consultation; hold a time-consuming and expensive consultation (when councils are already under severe financial pressures); then vote with a 2/3rds majority to approve change. 

All this is another reminder of how those in power will bias processes in their own interests, even when pretending to “let the people decide”.

At LDER, we will continue to press for fairer voting systems and we give our sincere gratitude to those Liberal Democrat councillors who voted for change, as well as our Electoral Reform Society Cymru and Make Votes Matter allies that were involved in the campaigns.