Dear John Cooper,
Congratulations on winning the Dumfries and Galloway Constituency at the general election on July 4th. We met on one occasion during the campaign. I was delivering leaflets for the Labour Candidate, James Wallace, and we spoke briefly and shook hands in passing one another on George Douglas Drive in the Troqueer area of Dumfries. I would have to admit that, of the contrasting polls featured in our respective party literature, yours proved to be the more accurate, though I think, in reality, neither was particularly on target. You must be aware that your victory was achieved on only a 29.6% share of the vote, with a very slim margin over Tracy Little for the SNP who was in turn ahead of James by an even slimmer margin. It is really concerning this point of democratic deficit that I am writing to you.
I have for many years been a supporter of electoral reform for the House of Commons and was gratified that at the Labour Conference in September 2022, the delegates voted in favour of such reform. Regrettably this resolution was not carried forward into the Labour Party manifesto, I don’t doubt because it was not seen as an issue which would play well at the election. The nature of our politics in the current era is not favourable to reflection on finer points of policy and constitutional arrangements, but that indeed is one of the reasons reform of the electoral system is so important.
It is my hope that the Labour Government will succeed in their programme to stimulate growth in the economy, address current failings in the NHS, to build affordable homes, to address the challenges of climate change and environmental depletion, and to deal efficiently, fairly and with humanity with migrants; but I know these are huge challenges and that only if the electorate is persuaded that things are improving will Labour win a second term. So then what? Perhaps another Conservative Government, definitely not something I would favour; but what concerns me more is the current positioning of Reform UK who won 9.4% of the vote in the recent election and now have seats in Parliament and who could very well build on the widespread dissatisfaction with our politics – after all 40% of the electorate did not vote at all.
When I was out working for Labour in the election campaign I went to one door which had pinned to it a hand written note with the following message: “No political leaflets or callers. You’re all parasites!” Well of course I had a laugh at this, and would have welcomed a conversation with the author of such a pithy message. I might have enjoyed trying to persuade him or her that there are politicians in all parties who have a genuine desire to change things for the better. My principal point would have been that it is the political system rather than individual politicians which is failing us.
In a number of other instances the leaflets I offered to people were declined without any enquiry into the matter of which party they favoured. In such cases I would invariably say: “Perhaps we might agree that our politics is in need of reform.” That suggestion was always received with affirmation and occasionally resulted in an amicable and constructive discussion of how this might be done.
I also encountered individuals who made clear their support for Nigel Farage and their distrust of politicians in all of the other main parties. I imagine that it was Labour, Conservative and the SNP who they had in mind when making these damning comments. A frequent issue raised by such individuals was the need to control immigration, despite the fact that in a Dumfries and Galloway context this issue would appear to a casual observer to be a very marginal concern. I sensed that the presence of an asylum hotel on the margins of Dumfries has been noticed and that the threat of its residents, who may be seen cycling to and from the town centre, magnified out of all proportion. The widely publicised rhetoric of Nigel Farage clearly has a part to play in engendering the mistrust and even fear which some people clearly feel when they encounter groups of young men speaking languages other than English.
I believe the Labour Party has every intention of bringing greater efficiency to the way in which migrants are processed and also taking strong action against the criminals who are profiting from their illegal transport to the United Kingdom. However it also clear that the civil wars, the failed states and climate change which are prompting people to seek a more secure life in Europe, are problems that will not be resolved in a single parliamentary term. Perhaps the five year term of this Labour government will be sufficient to reassure the politically disaffected and to rebuilt their trust in politics, but I fear that it will not.
The Reform Party which Nigel Farage leads, spell out a number of proposed constitutional changes in their manifesto, or, as they style it, their “Contract with you.” These changes include reform of the House of Lords, a reform many in the Labour Party, including Keir Starmer, support. “Thereafter,” they say, there should be a referendum on constitutional reform. I doubt very much their enthusiasm for this will last beyond the point at which they win a majority of seats in the House of Commons. Nigel Farage is very happy to ally himself with Donald Trump, the most duplicitous individual ever to emerge in the politics of the modern era and thus Farage’s commitment to genuine democratic reform lacks credibility.
To be clear: the constituency from which Reform draws its support has not been properly represented in our politics for many years. This must change, and the most critical reform to enable a more grounded and constructive dialogue between all political parties and factions will be to establish a fairer voting system.
In a recent edition of BBC’s Any Questions, I listened to Lord Falconer, a Labour Peer, explain why the current First Past the Post Electoral system is the best available to us. I was shocked by his complacency in the face of a manifest democratic failure in the result of the recent election. I say this even as a supporter of the Labour Party who have so conspicuously benefited from the outcome. I hope you may be sufficiently interested in the issues raised in this letter to consider a more detailed response to Lord Falconers comments, available here, in which a number of suggestions are offered regarding the form of proportional representation best suited to the House of Commons.
I am sure you will be very busy with your constituency work in the coming parliamentary session, but I am very open to discussion of the issues raised in this letter, either by email or in person.
Kind regards,
Stephen Shellard
About Stephen Shellard
I am a retired College lecturer, having worked originally in supported programmes but latterly having taught social science subjects, Psychology and Politics, though my degree was in Sociology. I am from Newry in Northern Ireland, but now live in Dumfries in South West Scotland. https://carruchan.wordpress.com/about/
Carruchan
Open Letter to John Cooper, MP for Dumfries and Galloway Constituency
Dear John Cooper,
Congratulations on winning the Dumfries and Galloway Constituency at the general election on July 4th. We met on one occasion during the campaign. I was delivering leaflets for the Labour Candidate, James Wallace, and we spoke briefly and shook hands in passing one another on George Douglas Drive in the Troqueer area of Dumfries. I would have to admit that, of the contrasting polls featured in our respective party literature, yours proved to be the more accurate, though I think, in reality, neither was particularly on target. You must be aware that your victory was achieved on only a 29.6% share of the vote, with a very slim margin over Tracy Little for the SNP who was in turn ahead of James by an even slimmer margin. It is really concerning this point of democratic deficit that I am writing to you.
I have for many years been a supporter of electoral reform for the House of Commons and was gratified that at the Labour Conference in September 2022, the delegates voted in favour of such reform. Regrettably this resolution was not carried forward into the Labour Party manifesto, I don’t doubt because it was not seen as an issue which would play well at the election. The nature of our politics in the current era is not favourable to reflection on finer points of policy and constitutional arrangements, but that indeed is one of the reasons reform of the electoral system is so important.
It is my hope that the Labour Government will succeed in their programme to stimulate growth in the economy, address current failings in the NHS, to build affordable homes, to address the challenges of climate change and environmental depletion, and to deal efficiently, fairly and with humanity with migrants; but I know these are huge challenges and that only if the electorate is persuaded that things are improving will Labour win a second term. So then what? Perhaps another Conservative Government, definitely not something I would favour; but what concerns me more is the current positioning of Reform UK who won 9.4% of the vote in the recent election and now have seats in Parliament and who could very well build on the widespread dissatisfaction with our politics – after all 40% of the electorate did not vote at all.
When I was out working for Labour in the election campaign I went to one door which had pinned to it a hand written note with the following message: “No political leaflets or callers. You’re all parasites!” Well of course I had a laugh at this, and would have welcomed a conversation with the author of such a pithy message. I might have enjoyed trying to persuade him or her that there are politicians in all parties who have a genuine desire to change things for the better. My principal point would have been that it is the political system rather than individual politicians which is failing us.
In a number of other instances the leaflets I offered to people were declined without any enquiry into the matter of which party they favoured. In such cases I would invariably say: “Perhaps we might agree that our politics is in need of reform.” That suggestion was always received with affirmation and occasionally resulted in an amicable and constructive discussion of how this might be done.
I also encountered individuals who made clear their support for Nigel Farage and their distrust of politicians in all of the other main parties. I imagine that it was Labour, Conservative and the SNP who they had in mind when making these damning comments. A frequent issue raised by such individuals was the need to control immigration, despite the fact that in a Dumfries and Galloway context this issue would appear to a casual observer to be a very marginal concern. I sensed that the presence of an asylum hotel on the margins of Dumfries has been noticed and that the threat of its residents, who may be seen cycling to and from the town centre, magnified out of all proportion. The widely publicised rhetoric of Nigel Farage clearly has a part to play in engendering the mistrust and even fear which some people clearly feel when they encounter groups of young men speaking languages other than English.
I believe the Labour Party has every intention of bringing greater efficiency to the way in which migrants are processed and also taking strong action against the criminals who are profiting from their illegal transport to the United Kingdom. However it also clear that the civil wars, the failed states and climate change which are prompting people to seek a more secure life in Europe, are problems that will not be resolved in a single parliamentary term. Perhaps the five year term of this Labour government will be sufficient to reassure the politically disaffected and to rebuilt their trust in politics, but I fear that it will not.
The Reform Party which Nigel Farage leads, spell out a number of proposed constitutional changes in their manifesto, or, as they style it, their “Contract with you.” These changes include reform of the House of Lords, a reform many in the Labour Party, including Keir Starmer, support. “Thereafter,” they say, there should be a referendum on constitutional reform. I doubt very much their enthusiasm for this will last beyond the point at which they win a majority of seats in the House of Commons. Nigel Farage is very happy to ally himself with Donald Trump, the most duplicitous individual ever to emerge in the politics of the modern era and thus Farage’s commitment to genuine democratic reform lacks credibility.
To be clear: the constituency from which Reform draws its support has not been properly represented in our politics for many years. This must change, and the most critical reform to enable a more grounded and constructive dialogue between all political parties and factions will be to establish a fairer voting system.
In a recent edition of BBC’s Any Questions, I listened to Lord Falconer, a Labour Peer, explain why the current First Past the Post Electoral system is the best available to us. I was shocked by his complacency in the face of a manifest democratic failure in the result of the recent election. I say this even as a supporter of the Labour Party who have so conspicuously benefited from the outcome. I hope you may be sufficiently interested in the issues raised in this letter to consider a more detailed response to Lord Falconers comments, available here, in which a number of suggestions are offered regarding the form of proportional representation best suited to the House of Commons.
I am sure you will be very busy with your constituency work in the coming parliamentary session, but I am very open to discussion of the issues raised in this letter, either by email or in person.
Kind regards,
Stephen Shellard
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About Stephen Shellard
I am a retired College lecturer, having worked originally in supported programmes but latterly having taught social science subjects, Psychology and Politics, though my degree was in Sociology. I am from Newry in Northern Ireland, but now live in Dumfries in South West Scotland. https://carruchan.wordpress.com/about/