Strictly Voting Systems

Since I'm revealing guilty secrets, I should possibly also reveal my bordering-on-the-obsession passion for Strictly Come Dancing. Every Saturday night, and every weekday evening, my video now knows to record every ronde, every tantrum, every chicken walk and every bad joke of Bruce's.

As a stalwart of a number of online SCD Forums, I have been quite amused by the analysis of the votes which goes on every week as somebody's beloved couple gets knocked out. I would love to see such interest in the vagaries of the political system. Indeed, I am reminded of the many electoral systems anoraks within the Lib Dems.

In SCD, it isn't in the early stages the worst dancers who leave. The celebrities and the professional dancers each have their followers who vote for them and the person at the bottom of the table can be guaranteed to pick up sympathy votes in proportion to how horrid the judges have been to them. The middle of the table is the worst place to be, as last night's result shows. Spoony and Ola were almost in the middle, yet 4 couples at the bottom overtook them in the public vote so they were the ones to leave.

They lost out to someone who a judge described as not being able to walk and chew gum, to my personal favourites whose dance had not been wonderful, but who were fab for entertainment value, despite them both being dressed in ferrari red lycra and to the avowed bad boy who had teased us through a filthy jive.

It's funny how people can see injustice in the voting system on a Saturday evening light entertainment show, but not appreciate that they are effectively being done at local and parliamentary elections. Ultimately the councillors and MPs make decisions which affect all our lives and should be elected in such a way that reflects our opinions. The Liberal Democrats in Scotland have assured fair votes for local councils up here - how long before our friends in England enjoy their chance to break up the unfair Labour and Tory monoliths?