2018-14 Malice in Blahblahland

Alice comes to Brexitland...

2018-13 Brexit: a “meaningful” vote?

http://qpol.qub.ac.uk/brexit-a-meaningful-vote/  (See 2018-12, -11, -7, -2, 2017-14, -1, 2016-12, -9 and especially 2016-1, in which we predicted the result of the June 2016 Brexit nonsense.)

2018-12 The People's Vote - preferential?

Infacts has just published, "There's more than one way to count a three-way People's Vote." It’s on:    https://infacts.org/theres-more-than-one-way-to-count-a-three-way-peoples-vote/ 

2018-11, UK Review of Referendums...

A review, University College London, into the conduct of referendums, calls for multi-option ballots. Because of our submission?  Maybe.

And it follows on from, and supports, Ireland's Citizens' Assembly. See 2018-3.

2018-10 Brexit and Boris

So Boris Johnson resigns. But why? Hence our latest press release, No 22, top-right hand corner of the home page, calling for the matrix vote.

2018-9 The London demo for a People's Vote

Please sign the petition for a people's vote: www.peoples-vote.uk/petition 

23rd June, 100,000 in London marched for a people's vote. Brexit was divisive, not least because the ballot was binary: for-or-against, yes-or-no, remain-or-leave? To overcome the division, it would be wise to use an inclusive multi-option vote. The "people's vote" should be everybody's vote, at least something like: remain, Theresa May's negotiated option, or the WTO?

"Our campaign must be diverse," Caroline Lucas. "I want to work with people... from other parties," Sir Vince Cable. In other words, the UK needs (PR in elections and) pluralism in decision-making. The latter means multi-option voting, the most accurate form of which is a preferential points system, the MBC.

Indeed, if the UK had PR, we would not now be in this mess anyway. Secondly, if the 2011 referendum had been multi-optional, (like the New Zealand poll of 1992), we would probably now have PR. And thirdly, if the Brexit ballot had been multi-optional - something like the EU, EEA or WTO? - the EU option would probably have won. (See also 2018-7, 2018-2, 2017-14, 2017-1, 2016-12, 2016-9 and especially 2016-1, in which we predicted the result of the June 2016 Brexit nonsense.)

2018-8 North Korea

I went there for 10 days on 6th June, and Kim Jong-un went to see Donald Trump in Singapore. Mine was a package tour, of course, and there's more on the blog.

2018-7 Brexit: a “meaningful” vote?

To be “meaningful” for (almost) everyone, any final ballot should be multi-optional and, at best, preferential. Something like:

a) Theresa May’s negotiated option;

b) EEA and Customs Union;

c) EU;

d) WTO.

2018-6 Beijing/Tianjin/Hong Kong/Taiwan

Four lectures in four universities, all with the same message: two-option referendums are usually divisive, often inaccurate, and sometimes a cause of war. If but for the sake of Xinjiang, any polls in Hong Kong or Taiwan should not be binary.

2018-5, Dr John Robb RIP

One of our patrons, John was only fantastic. He was one of the few in NI who managed to build friendships based on trust from both sides of Northern Ireland's sectarian divide. Indeed, it was he who was largely responsible for the success of the New Ireland Group, an NGO which he founded in 1982 and which so often managed to bring together persons from all walks of life, not least the politicians from across the dreadful divide.