Mike Barker calls for reform of Parliament

11.28.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Fri 22nd May 2009

Mike Barker, Lib Dems Parliamentary Spokesman for Darlington, had the following letter published in the Northern Echo today:

"As the MPs' expenses scandal rumbles on, we hear calls from the Conservatives for an immediate General Election. Much as I look forward to taking on Darlington Labour MP Alan Milburn at the ballot box, I think this misses the point. What we need is a reformed Parliament.

"We need an electoral system that gives real power to voters and makes sure that all votes in all seats count. We need to get rid of all those hundreds of safe seats where most people's votes are wasted and MPs cannot be made accountable. A General Election will not deliver that. It will give the illusion of change, the illusion of accountability. Since many of the worst offenders in this scandal are in safe seats, a General Election will barely touch the guilty ones.

"We need the other main parties to support the Liberal Democrats' commitment to constitutional and electoral reform.

Without that commitment, an election would be nothing more than a shuffling of the deckchairs."