Make Votes Matter and the Alliance are creating exciting opportunities to raise and debate Proportional Representation in Parliament. There's now huge public support for equal votes and real democracy in the UK. We need you to take two simple steps to help us turn demand outside Parliament into action inside Parliament: i) sign the Parliamentary petition, and ii) lobby your MP to support Chuka Umunna's cross-party Early Day Motion!
Parliamentary Petition: calling a debate Parliament!
Firstly, we've opened an official Parliamentary petition. Why another petition? As this one is hosted by the Government's official petition website, we can make sure it is debated by MPs if it receives over 100,000 signatures.
Click to view, sign and share the petition!
While Jonathan Reynolds and Caroline Lucas have both proposed 10 Minute Rule Bills for PR in the last twelve months which have resulted in 10 minute debates in Parliament, it's been years since MPs had the opportunity to debate the issue in detail.
Our campaigning since the last General Election has helped establish fully cross-party support for PR within Parliament - with Labour and Conservative MPs aligning themselves with long-standing supporters.
That's why the time is right for this debate to take place - to give a platform to these MPs and their arguments, to attract more media attention to the cause, and to build public awareness.
Early Day Motion: building support amongst MPs!
Secondly, MPs from the MVM Alliance have laid before Parliament an Early Day Motion (EDM) calling for Proportional Representation. EDM's are essentially petitions that only MPs can sign - and they are used to draw attention to a wide range of issues.
Click to write to your MP with www.writetothem.com
The EDM to make votes matter has been tabled by primary sponsor Chuka Umunna (Labour) who is leading efforts to secure broad, cross-party support for the motion. It is co-sponsored by Caroline Lucas (Green Party), Alistair Carmichael (Liberal Democrats), Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru), Tommy Sheppard (SNP) and Douglas Carswell (UKIP), showing amazing cross-party support
The EDM has already picked up some great coverage in the Independent, and attracted signatories from a seventh party - the SDLP!
Please write to your MP asking them to add their name to Early Day Motion 591.
The message can be very brief - but it's really important to write in your own words to make sure your MP reads it properly and responds. As always, if you let us know what your MP says in response and we'll add their position to our map of MPs' support.
Above is an example of an email sent to a local MP. It can be even shorter - but be sure to say it's about EDM 591 and briefly explain why it is you want them to support PR.
Let's make it happen!
By taking these two simple actions, we have a great opportunity: not just to call for real democracy as we have in the past, but to work with pro-reform MPs to make change happen inside Parliament. Both the Petition and EDM will close in Spring 2017 - so let's act now to make both as successful as possible.
Please take these two steps - and share this with friends and on social media to encourage others to do the same. The tide is turning and the time is now.