An interesting idea, but I think the “split vote” thing would be a problem, despite Ms King’s attempts to wave it away. You would need a rule for that.

For God’s sake, we don’t need any MORE!!!!!

And what about dogs?

Since Blunkett went the have had NO representation.

Howsabout, instead of having 2 MPs, you have one MP who can appoint a stand-in to vote in his/her place?

Chaise: Howsabout, instead of having 2 MPs, you have one MP who can appoint a stand-in to vote in his/her place?

If the stand-in is entitled to use their own judgement on the vote having listened to the debate and been intimidated by the party whips, they’re acting as an MP and should be elected as such.

If they aren’t, the much easier solution would be to allow MPs to send postal votes to the Speaker in advance, and increase the budget given to MPs for hiring support staff. [1]

(Simplest rule to deal with disagreements: if any part of an MP is counted by a teller, the whole MP is deemed to have been counted. In the event that they both turn up and walk through different doors, that’s an abstention. The rest of the time they can work it out between themselves)

[1] Given ATOS, etc. I think this has to be a flat increase rather than have someone try to work out how much extra staffing a particular MP might need.

Considering there’s around 10 million people with a disability in the country and barely a hand-full in the House of Commons, something needs to be done. It becomes more acute when you consider how poorly Parliament is currently meeting disabled people’s needs, I think.

The petition – getting as many names on it as possible – is a good way to start getting the issue discussed http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/38829

For anyone who wants to learn more about the campaign, you can view the website here http://www.disabilitypolitics.org.uk/

The easiest solution is to allow candidate teams to stand for election. With the salary and associated staff support costs being the same regardless of whether an individual or a team wins the election.

Then introduce electronic voting into the commons alongside a whole range of other reforms to bring parliament into the 21st century such as more normal office hours, a standard expenses policy that reflects practice elsewhere, and ability for MPs to be sacked for gross misconduct like in other jobs.

@ 4 cim

All good points. I meant a stand-in acting as a sort of human postal vote. They shouldn’t be able to address the house or do MPs’ main job (jeering).

I guess counting a “split MP” as an abstention would deal with a lot of potential problems.

[Deborah King] says if there were more disabled MPs, “I don’t think the [Remploy] closures would be taking place.”

…because disabled Tory MPs would have genuinely have the interests of other disabled people at heart? We’ve spent two years having the same argument re. more female MPs – and I don’t think a single female Tory MP has come out against the cuts, or agreed with the claim that they disproportionately affect women.

It’s an interesting idea, but there’s a risk that women or disabled people would be relegated to ‘Plus 1′ status unless more of them are the ‘primary’ candidate or are clearly working as one half of a proper jobshare (especially if it meant that more men could take up more family time rather than it just facilitating and confirming the caregiving role for the woman).

@ 8 redpesto

It’s actually a rather odd assumption that MPs would always be tub-thumping for their demographic, especially when it’s indirect (in a “this affects lots of disabled people, but not me” kind of way). It’s not clear why Theresa May has any more reason to be concerned about the fates of everyday women than does George Osborne.

This is also why I wince when people claim out that people from group X are “poorly represented” because not many of them are in parliament. My female, black and Asian neighbours are every bit as represented by our white male MP as I am. Having a disproportionate amount of white men in power indicates a potential problem, but probably at a much deeper level than simply “British politics is sexist and racist”.

@Chaise Guevara

Not quite. There’s two types of representation: descriptive and substantive.

Substantive representation is debatable(though there’s much research to suggest it exists i.e. if you reach a critical mass of women in Parliament, women’s concerns are more likely to be addressed).

Descriptive representation is less so. Your female, black and Asian neighbours are not descriptively represented by male, white MPs. Does this matter? I’d say so. A political system that has barriers that excludes anyone but people from the ‘majority’ is worrying – and looking at the centre of power and not seeing ‘yourself’ does nothing but harm.

There’s more to bring an MP than just turning up and voting. Speaking and committees, for example. How would they work?

This is a worthy idea, but how much is it changing the job to attract disabled people so much that the job becomes impractical? Wouldn’t better support for disabled people be a more reasonable approach?

@ 10 Frances

“Descriptive representation is less so. Your female, black and Asian neighbours are not descriptively represented by male, white MPs.”

Ok, firstly “descriptive representation” sounds like something invented by someone who always needs something to complain about. More to the point, if it DID mean anything, I’d find it kinda offensive to be told that someone represents me better because they look like me. Maybe that 80-year-old black lady and I just see eye-to-eye.

“Does this matter? I’d say so. A political system that has barriers that excludes anyone but people from the ‘majority’ is worrying – and looking at the centre of power and not seeing ‘yourself’ does nothing but harm.”

Agreed, but this goes back to what I was saying about deeper problems. If, say, Asians are under-represented in parliament, that probably has as much to do with socioeconomic and/or cultural reasons as it does racism.

And this being parliament, you can’t have quotas, because people have the right to vote for whichever candidate they prefer.

I’d find it kinda offensive to be told that someone represents me better because they look like me. Maybe that 80-year-old black lady and I just see eye-to-eye.

Quite – I’d feel a sight more represented by Priti Patel than I would by Tristram Hunt – and he’s a white, upper-middle class, public school educated, Oxbridge historian with two daughters.

Dear me, Tim. I must say that’s some admission. It really is.

There’s a finite pot of money. Everyone and very group thinks they deserve it. You think you’ve got it bad? Really? What about me? The 40 plus divorced single white chidless male immigrant . I pay so much tax and get sweet FA back. No offence but it’s rearranging the deck chairs. The ship is going down because the british public allowed the bank pigs to survive in 2008 all for the promise of sustained prices on their precious little homes. Well now you all realise how dumb that that deal with the devil was. Rates have to be kept low so house prices can be kept high . The folks financing the good ship UK demand the appearance of cuts if the money is going to flow cheap. That means the appearance of austerity which means somebody has to pay. I’ve paid way more than my share during my six years on this island. My advice to the disabled folks is to stop loading the deck to get more than your fair share.

@ 15 Neil

“You think you’ve got it bad? Really? What about me? The 40 plus divorced single white chidless male immigrant. I pay so much tax and get sweet FA back.”

Firstly, please deactivate Daily Male mode. Your age, race, gender and immigration status are, AFAIK, irrelevant here, in that you’d pay the same as a 20-year old, black, female native. The fact that you’re divorced is only relevant in that you’re single, so that’s redundant too.

Secondly, if you pay loads of tax you must be earning loads of money, so count your blessings. Claiming you get FA back is a lie (never used roads, have you?), but the fact that you feel you can make the claim suggests that you’re not in any of the often-vulnerable groups that need benefits. More blessings to count.

“I’ve paid way more than my share during my six years on this island. ”

UK tax is at least broadly based on ability to pay. So arguably you’ve paid exactly your share, unless your wage slip has the wrong tax code on it.

I wouldn’t worry Neil, bitter 40 plus divorced males are quite well represented in parliament and even more so in the tabloid newspapers. Its just that as an immigrant, most of them probably direct their anger at you rather than the real culprits.

Dear me, Tim. I must say that’s some admission. It really is.

I was just thinking of a Tory as unlike me personally as I could think of – Asian, female, comprehensive education, Uni of Essex and (poor thing) only has a son. I then got scared by how much I have in common with Tristram Hunt *makes sign to avert evil*

@28 nice try, but I’m still sniggering. I really am.

No problem in principle. But do have some concerns, why is it thought that only disabled people will support helping disabled people and surely is is not democratic to have a special scheme to build numbers from specific sections of society.

Also, where is the money comming from, this is going to cost more than having only 1 MP for a constituency, with wage, expenses etc … , we currently have a £150bn defecit and a £1.1Trillion debt, so how can we afford more politicians, i don’t think we are in position to increase any costs at all.

The proposition does not appeal to me.

MP is a single person with a point of view. If I write a letter to my MP, the response is his/her opinion. Am I expected to bifurcate it?

OP: “MPs would still only be eligible for one vote per constituency, so those in a job share would be required to agree on which way to do so in advance, but King doesn’t envision this to be a problem. ‘With voting, the vast majority of votes are taken on the basis of whips or party manifesto commitments.’”

In plain words, this proposition requires that MPs operate by whips’ rules.

@2. pagar: “Since Blunkett went the [dogs] have had NO representation.”

Blunkett was re-elected in 2010. His dog does not require election.

The most under represented group anywhere in this country was the one my mother was in. White working class women. End of argument.