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The lack of trust of MP's, and in Parliament, is going to be extremely difficult to turn around - in fact it will be almost impossible without a root and branch reform of the electoral system.
The internet is creating a 21st century platform for democracy - which a number of Government's are starting to use and benefit from. In previous posts the application of Poweromics* has been often raised and the lack of effective democracy** in the UK too ... and the time for change is now ...
and it's not just me saying it ... Ministers within the Government are now saying it too (e.g. Alan Johnson, Health Secretary and Michael Wills, Justice Minister). They are all starting to realise they will have to fundamentally change how Parliament (as well as political parties) work to regain the trust of people, and to properly represent people ... so perhaps the expenses fiasco is a blessing in disguise ...
The political parties know that previous supporters are less likely to support them now, either with their votes or with their cash (see the PCS union comments previously), with many parties now wanting the tax-payer to fund them too!
If they have any hope of persuading us this is the right thing to do, we will need to see much more transparency and have much more of a say as to what is allowed and how things are done ... so we are properly represented ... and not opening up another gravy train for 'politicians' and/or 'political parties' to exploit and profit from ...
* Poweromics = People using position and power for their own personal gain, based on poor moral values, self interest and greed.
** We only get a say/vote once every five years in a general election, and even then only a small minority of votes actually make a difference as to which of the two main parties gets in Government ... the only votes that effectively 'count' are fringe votes in marginal constituencies (2-3% of the total) - and that's why the two main parties keep changing the voting boundaries too! 21st Century democracy? ... and yet we often hear politicians quote our 'democracy' as an example for others to follow!
Posted on the Panorama blog Is Your MP Working for you? No 1 (leanomist)
