FVC assesses PR proposals in four provinces (March 17, 2005)
March 17, 2005
Fair Vote Canada - News -- March 17, 2005
Fair Vote Canada assesses proportional representation proposals in four provinces
Two proposals merit a "yes" vote in referendums
As half of Canada's provinces move closer to an historic transformation of their electoral systems, Fair Vote Canada (FVC) released the first detailed comparative analysis of the proportional representation (PR) voting systems being proposed for British Columbia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec. At least two of these provinces will hold referendums this year.
"Our assessments run the gamut from very positive to very negative," said Fair Vote Canada president Wayne Smith. "We focused our analysis on two simple principles: that all voters are equal and every vote should count. We also considered the systems' likely effect on fair representation for women, minorities, and Aboriginals, and on accountable government, geographic representation, and real voter choice." The complete 18-page assessment report is available on request.
British Columbia: BC voters will decide by referendum on May 17, 2005 whether to adopt the BC-STV system, a form of proportional representation recommended by the BC Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform. Fair Vote Canada recommends a `Yes' vote, rather than continuing with the grossly unfair first-past-the-post voting system. However, FVC also urges British Columbians to consider this the first step in a continuing reform process, and to press for further improvements to increase proportionality and enhance diversity in the legislature.
New Brunswick: Fair Vote Canada believes the mixed member proportional (MMP) system recently proposed by the province's Commission on Legislative Democracy would perform reasonably well. If presented in a referendum, Fair Vote Canada would encourage a `Yes' vote. However, further improvements are still possible and recommended. Fair Vote Canada supports the Commission's proposal to Premier Lord for a referendum no later than the 2007 provincial election.
Prince Edward Island: Islanders will vote on a proposed MMP system in late 2005. While important decisions on the proposed system have yet to be made, Fair Vote Canada believes that the process is generally on track. The final version of the proposed MMP system, if well designed by the new Commission in a citizen-driven process, could be a major improvement over first-past-the-post voting.
Quebec: Fair Vote Canada is disappointed with the voting system model released in December 2004 by the Minister for the Reform of Democratic Institutions. The MMP framework provides a very good foundation on which to build a fair voting system, but the current proposal must be greatly improved. We urge the Minister to establish a citizen-driven process to improve the proposal, and then allow voters to make the final decision in a referendum, perhaps in the spring of 2006.
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