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January 23, 2008
Countdown to publication - the wait is almost over
We are now expecting publication of the Government's review of electoral systems this Thursday morning (24 Jan). We are unsure at this moment whether there will be an oral ministerial statement in the House at 11.30am, or whether there will just be a written statement released.
ERS has produced a good pre-publication briefing, which gives the context for the review and what we are about to read. There's also a shorter 2 page summary version here .
It will be interesting to see if the review ends up being a little more favourable and constructive than we were initially expecting, possibly in part due to changed political circumstances and the need for Brown to actively keep all options open ahead of what might be a hung parliament after the next election. If that was the case, it would be better if the ground was prepared in advance, by conducting a proper public debate over the coming year(s) and actually addressing the issue from the voters' perspective. Certainly the question to be asked of the Government is how are they going to take the issue forward, and how will the findings of the review feed into the Ministry of Justice's ongoing Governance of Britain consultation and wider efforts to re-engage people into the political process?
Posted by malcolmclark on January 23, 2008
