THE DE BORDA INSTITUTE

www.deborda.org

PRESS    RELEASE (embargoed 0001, 3^rdMay 2011)

Peter Emerson, the founder member of the NI Green Party and, according to Professor Arend Lijphart of California, “one of the world’s top experts on election rules,” urges all members of the Green Party and indeed every voter in Northern Ireland to vote ‘yes’ for AV in the referendum on May 5^th.

When New Zealand held their referendum in 1992, they had five different systems on the ballot paper, a choice which included AV, FPP and PR!  Slovenia had three.  But here in the UK, we have only two.  In the absence of any real pluralism, we just have to choose the better of the two.  AV is not proportional, a bit capricious, and not very good; but FPP is Orwellian in its simplicity, and in its reflection of the popular will, hopelessly inaccurate.

Let us therefore vote for AV, and let us hope for a better multi-option referendum in the future.

Peter Emerson

Director

The de Borda Institute

2.5.2011