Participatory Budgeting (PB) first came to prominence in Porto Alegre in Brazil in 1988. Simply put, it allows local people not only to prioritise expenditures, but also to come to a collective decision on the allocation of funds. This can hardly be done by a majority vote, but it can be done by ranking the various options in order of preference, i.e. by an MBC. Rankings can be measured in other ways, of course; but in June 2008, in a paper on consensus voting presented at a PB seminar held in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, this Institute argued for the MBC. In the subsequent round-up of opinions, much enthusiam was expressed: and in the words of one participamt, "I am persuaded".
Participatory budgeting is not a threat to representative democracy; rather, the former can enhance the latter. We hope other pilots will follow.