ELECTORAL REFORM

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 8652, 10 February 1914, Page 4

ELECTORAL REFORM

In an article appearing in another part of this paper Sir John Findlay [stresses, in earnest and logical terms, iv/hat we certainly agree to be one of [New Zealand’s greatest and most urgent requirements in the way of legislative reform. That is, the modernising of our electoral machinery in order to give proper expression to ■the will of the people. There can be no doubt in the minds of thoughtful' men and women that'this is absolutely: necessary if the democracy is to be: articulate. At the present time, as Sir John Findlay says, New Zealand, is governed by a party that has not the support, approval, and goodwill of the people as ascertained a,t the ballotbox. At the Last general election the verdict of the constituencies as a whole was against Maaseyism by practically two to one. And yet Mr Massey is. 'Prime Minister, and is permitted to' .de-liheralise the statute book, to squander the public estate, to incur large indebtedness on behalf of the present, and the next generations, to sell the; freehold of our lands, to inaugurate a j local navy scheme. This on a minority! vote—a vote of only a fraction morethan one-third as against two-thirds of the people. This is not democracy. It is not representative government. Itj Is but a caricature of all that is held to be essential in our constitutional system of Parliamentary rule adminis-; tration, and government. If this was* possible with a certain measure of pre-l [caution in the Second Ballot Act, whatj may the position be now that we have! reverted to the antiquated method of " first past the post ” P We have never considered the second ballot as anything but imperfect, but it was at least an instalment of reform, and even Mr Massey, notwithstanding what he has done since to encourage reaction, admitted years ago that he preferred the second ballot to the top-man-in “principle.” However, the main point is that we want a system that will make the Parliament a true reflex of the opinion , of the country. Sir John Findlay supports the principle of proportional representation, which is certainly scientifically the best that has yet been evolved. It may be that a good deal of public instruction and education is necessary—or at all events advisable—before Parliament would be justified in adopting proportional representation, although we are not prepared to say that that is a sufficient disqualification. The suggestion has been advanced from the Tory camp that proportional representation should be applied to the cities and the “ first-past-the-post” scramble to the country. That, however, is obviously a devious device to secure for the Tories their share of representation in the towns and more than their share in the rural constituencies —which, of course, may be political tactics, but is a long remove from honest statesmanship. In lieu of the early, or ultimate, adoption of proportional representation, however, Sir John Findlay urges the use of the single transferable vote. This is a practical suggestion. It can he immediately applied to all elections in present constituencies where there are more than two candidates. It is a proposed that can he supported by people of all shades of opinion, and opposed by none but those who are enemies of true democratic government.