Is Democracy Dying through Lack of Interest?

Yesterday the Labour Party won the by-election in Kilburn and The High Roads from the Blockhead Party (Anyone who works out the musical allusions and connections in that sentence gets a prize. Except you Phil Robinson!).

The winner secured a 3,400 majority, which, in my opinion, was excellent news. What was less excellent news was the turnout. For a by-election in the former Prime Minister’s seat—supposedly galvanised by a “Burnham Bounce”—a turnout of 38.7% demonstrates an appalling apathy amongst the electorate. Is Democracy Dying?

Nearly two-thirds of the electorate couldn’t be bothered to take an interest in who governs them. This comes right in the middle of party conference season, too, when the news is wall-to-wall with talking heads telling us what they would do if elected to government. What conclusions can we draw from this sad state of affairs?

Looking back, since Mrs Thatcher became PM in 1979, with the exception of Mr Blair, I don’t think there have been any Prime Ministers or Leaders of the Opposition (with the possible exception of the late John Smith) who have genuinely enthused the electorate. Thatcher did it—and then destroyed our industrial base. Blair did it—and then got us involved in stupid Middle East wars! It isn’t a brilliant record looking back over the last 50 years, and to top it all off, we still haven’t won the World Cup for a second time.

Burnham says, “Let’s try proportional representation.” I don’t think this goes far enough.

I think we need to structural changes:

• Make voting compulsory to ensure every voice is counted.
• Add a “None of the Above” box to the ballot paper so voters can actively reject the options on offer.
• Scrap the House of Lords and bring in an elected second chamber, preferably with only independent members.
• Break the link between being in politics and the seamless leap into well-paid directorships.

The electorate see politicians as being “in it for themselves” because a sizeable minority who collect second, third, and fourth jobs—or claim huge expenses—keep proving the electorate right.

In relatively recent history, we have seen what the death of democracy can bring, and the rise of populist politicians is often the first sign of it. I am 75 next month, so I am not expecting democracy to die before me. However, I worry quite a lot about my grandkids. I don’t think Mr Farage is a modern-day Hitler, but he may well be a sign that the direction we are moving in could eventually lead to one.

Democracy is like any other muscle. If you don’t use it, it loses strength—and eventually, it stops working.