Letter - Labour's promise on electoral reform

In a recent leaflet from Labour candidate Vernon Coaker he states that Lib Dem voters in Gedling Constituency should vote for him as Labour are promising to hold a referendum on changes to the voting system for the House of Commons. I'm afraid Liberal Democrats have heard this all before from Labour - in 1997 their manifesto stated "we are committed to a referendum on the voting system for the House of Commons"; in the 2001 and 2005 manifestos they said "a referendum remains the right way to agree any change for [the electoral system at] Westminster. I'm sorry Vernon we have waited long enough - why should we believe Labour on this issue 13 years after gaining power? Only last week Labour MPs in the Scottish Parliament voted down a proposal to support electoral reform for the Westminster Parliament. The only way for supporters of electoral reform for the House of Commons to bring this about is to vote for the Liberal Democrats.

Julia Bateman

Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate for Gedling