PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION.

Taranaki Daily News, 25 October 1919, Page 11

PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION.

MR, OTREGAN'S FOURTEEN POINTS. In an address at the Miramar Town Hall on Monday, Mr P. J. CKRegan summarised the advantages of proportional representation as under:—

1. The present system, in so far as it secures majority representation, neces. sarily leaves the minority without representation. The proportional system will ensure representation to every minority numerically strong enough to make an electoral quota. 2. In so far as it secures minority representation the present system necessarily deprives the majority of representation. The proportional system, while assuring representation to tne minority, will always secure majority representation.

3. The present sysitem cannot assure representation to the majority, but a. proportional system will assure representation both to majority and minority in proportion to the numerical strength of each.

4. Under the present system one section of opinion can obtain representation only by depriving another section of representation. The proportional system will enable each section of opinion to secure representation, but without depriving others of their proper share of representation.

o. The right to vote implies the right to Parliamentary representation, but the present system, by depriving large sections of opinion of representation, really renders the franchise nugatory. The proportional system guarantees the effective voting power of every section of opinion numerous enough to form an electoral quota. 6. The present system is not theoretically constitutional, inasmuch as Parliament is supposed to reflect the opinions of all the people. The proportional system alone accords with the constitutional theory of representation. 7. The present system is in just, because although the majority should rule, there is no reason why the minority should not be heard. The proportional system will assure a hearing to the minority, and is therefore just. 8. The present system implies a waste of votes, inasmuch as all votes in excess of a majority for each candidate are unnecessary to secure his election. The proportional system will permit the voter to transfer his vote if it should not be required to elect one or more candidates of his choice who do not require this vote.

9. The present system destroys tli£ freedom of the voter by limiting his choice, with the result that frequently electors either refrain from voting or vote reluctantly for candidates who do not represent their opinions. The proportional system will assure a large field of candidates, and hence every voter will have a wider choice, coupled with the assurance that since a majority is not required to secure the election of a candidate, every considerable section will secure representation. 10. Further, the present system des. troys the freedom of the electors in that they are grouped, without any reference to their wishes, in single-member electorates- Under the proportional system, a number of single electorates will be grouped together, and thus electors will be freed from the anomalies and injustice inseparable from the frequent alteration of electoral boundaries.

11. The present system permits and even facilitates the defeat of prominent and able men, whose attitude may be at variance with a small section in their constituencies. Sir John Hall, for example, once narrowly escaped defeat by a difference with some fishermen about the size of net meshes. The proportional system, by making it unnecessary to secure the support of a majority of the constituencies, will assure a Parliamentary career to a capable and pub-lic-spirited man.

12. The present system, since it necesarily implies the disfranchisement of one section of opinion by another, creates intense feeling and not infrequently illwill. The proportional system by assuring representation to all sections will elevate political controversy to a higher plane, and will necessarily remove the cause of much of the strife and bitterness inseparable from the preseut system.

13. The present system encourages parochialism in politics, in that each member represents a single district. The proportional system will require larger constituencies and will give to each of these a group of representatives, and will thus have the same beneficent tendency in the National Parliament that is obtained in municipalities by the abolition of the ward system. 14. The present system does not assure secrecy of the ballot, for the reason that at small polling booths there can be no real secrecy. The proportional system requires all the votes cast to be counted by one central booth, thus assuring the completest secrecy. After the address, the lecturer answer, ed a great number of questions, and the meeting concluded with a hearty vote of thanks to him and the usual compliment to the chair.