Could a move to Proportional Representation Voting System De-Fang Farage? We ask Stuart Donald, author of a recent paper on the subject, now published by Compass.
Fiona and Marlene are joined by returning guest and data analyst Stuart Donald to discuss his latest research paper, The Temper Trap. The trio explore how Proportional Representation (PR) can be a powerful tool in limiting the influence of far-right politics, especially compared to the UK’s current First Past the Post (FPTP) electoral system.
Stuart shares compelling data from across Europe, showing how countries with PR systems—despite the presence of far-right parties—have managed to keep extreme immigration and social policies in check. Could Reform UK gaining seats in Holyrood or the Senedd actually reduce the risk of Nigel Farage becoming Prime Minister? Could PR be the key to protecting democracy in the UK?
Tune in to discover:
- Why PR is more effective than FPTP in containing extremism
- How European democracies handle far-right parties differently
- Whether PR could be the unexpected safeguard against a Farage-led government
Key themes:
- 02:01 Background to The Temper Trap
- 07:25 Why PR drives higher voter participation
- 09:19 How FPTP allows outsiders to drag parties to the right
- 14:05 Uk health spending and child mortality is worse than EU average
- 17:06 Welfare chauvinism vs welfare nihilism
- 20:33 UK populism punishes the poor
- 27:10 How PR protects against extremism
- 32:52 Why FPTP cannot cope with neo-liberalism
- 36:57 Can Holyrood break free from FPTP mentality
- 41:07 John Curtice warning – pick the right majority!
- 44:53 Dangers of Labour inertia and possible UK routes to PR
- You can watch the video of this podcasts on our YouTube channel here
- Our previous podcast with Stuart is The Union Dividend – DeBunked! Stuart unpacks the myths and misconceptions about the financial benefits Scotland have supposedly received from England. And instead reveals how much better off we would be if we were able to make our own political choices.
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