Currently in the UK there is a crisis of democracy, but with that comes an exciting opportunity to reinvent the political landscape. Britain, like many other countries, is facing an increasing number of people that have simply turned off politics altogether, while others are choosing to throw their support behind smaller and less institutionalised political outlets or movements. They are, quite understandably, fed up with a system that they feel doesn’t work for them and one that they don’t think listens. Therefore radical changes must be made, and, while there is no one-size-fits-all solution, the recent announcement that the Labour party is considering using US-style primaries in future candidate selections could be an exciting opportunity to meet these challenges head-on.
Despite this, the announcement has received some negative responses from party members, with many fearing that any such move would both weaken the role of the CLPs and the unions. But, far from weakening the role of CLPs, primaries will ensure they have a major role to play. Selecting the shortlists, raising awareness and campaigning for every single vote, will ensure that they remain important.
That said, party politics is less popular than it ever has been and people are looking for alternatives. Many people view ‘cronyism’ as endemic in the UK political system and primaries could be part of the answer to that, as it will allow people that are sympathetic to Labour but outside of the ‘party’ system to come forward. The truth is that we need more people from different backgrounds coming into politics and primaries offer the perfect opportunity to do this as proven in the Totnes party election, when Conservative Sarah Wollaston was selected through an open primary.
One concern for many is that political tactics will be used to weaken the election, with some worried that political opponents could hijack the selection process and ensure that the weakest candidate wins. However, at the moment a system of ‘closed primaries’ is being considered, meaning that only Labour party members and declared supporters would be eligible to vote. While considering who the CLP would back for leadership in 2010, Bassetlaw Labour party ran a primary-style system where they polled all known Labour voters and members, to see who they believed should be the leader. The process was very successful and 10,000 people turned up to cast their vote. The benefits of this are twofold, because, while it engages with party supporters, making them feel as if they have a stake in the system, it also gives the party a candidate with known public appeal, a fact that could save the party in the long run. It would also mean that politicians are more accountable, particularly in safe seats because it would mean that every supporter matters. The Italian Socialist party, the Partito Democratico, also has an effective supporter primary system and it is estimated that it currently has three million supporters on its databases.
The Labour party has an excellent record of increasing democratic equality, with the introduction of all-women shortlists, for example. We should grab this opportunity to redesign the political system with both hands. In the long run the party will be stronger for it.
———————————————————
Kay Page is a member of Progress. She tweets @kaycpage