Burnham puts electoral reform at centre of Labour’s next campaign

Andy Burnham has pledged that Labour will seek changes to the UK’s electoral system at the next general election, putting reform on the party’s campaign agenda. In his first Labour conference speech as prime minister, he announced plans to establish a national commission to consider possible alternatives, but gave no details about its membership or timetable.

Burnham urged other parties to take part, saying the commission should help ensure that every voter is represented and heard. He has previously backed moving towards proportional representation (PR), telling delegates at last year’s conference that the time for such a change had arrived. His latest announcement turns that support into a proposed election commitment, though the eventual model remains undecided.

The current Westminster system, known as first-past-the-post, elects the candidate with the most votes in each constituency. Debate about whether it reflects voters’ preferences has grown as British politics has become more fragmented. It intensified after Labour won a large parliamentary majority in 2024 despite receiving 34% of the vote.

About 100 Labour MPs recently backed a parliamentary amendment calling for a commission to study alternatives. Burnham supported a similar proposal last year, when he was mayor of Greater Manchester. In his conference address, he warned that continuing with the existing arrangements could allow a divisive government to enter Downing Street with less than 30% of the vote. He also argued that persistent political instability could damage the country’s standing internationally.

The Liberal Democrats would support a move away from first-past-the-post. The party had already urged Burnham to introduce PR before the next general election, which must take place by 2029. The Conservatives are expected to oppose reform. Reform UK supported PR at the previous election, although speculation has emerged that the party may now be less committed to the idea.

There is no settled position across Labour, either. Deputy leader Lucy Powell said after Burnham’s speech that some sections of the party oppose changing the system. Speaking on BBC Two’s Politics Live, Powell said she personally supported electoral reform but did not endorse a particular replacement, noting that several possible designs were available.

Those options include the single transferable vote (STV), which the Liberal Democrats backed at the last UK election and which is used for Scottish council elections. Another possibility is the additional member system, which combines constituency contests under first-past-the-post with regional party lists; it is used to elect members of the Scottish Parliament. Earlier this year, Wales’s Senedd was elected for the first time under a closed-list proportional representation system.

Burnham’s proposal therefore opens a debate about both whether the voting system should change and what might replace it. The commission’s composition, start date and remit have not been announced, leaving questions about how the review would proceed and whether parties could agree on a model before the next election.