Democracy and Uncertainty

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The general election campaign is throwing up lots of strange messages from the politicians who are sent out to meet the press.

For example, I heard Labour's business spokesperson Chukka Umanna the other day putting Labour's case against a referendum on the UK's continued membership of the European Union (EU) which was followed up by Tony Blair.

Both Labour politicians held up Scotland's independence referendum as a reason for not asking the voters what they think, inviting viewers to agree that the 'uncertainty' an EU referendum would cause would be bad for business.

Now I'm in favour of the European Union and would vote for the UK and/or Scotland to remain a member.

But I also support more direct democracy from our political institutions and so I'm in favour of people having their say, just as we did over Scottish independence in September 2014.  

So I would favour more not fewer referendums and I see nothing to be afraid of, quite the opposite in fact and I think that most people (whichever way they voted) would consider Scotland's independence referendum as a triumph of democracy given the 85% turnout.

I would have a referendum, for example, on assisted dying because I believe a majority of the electorate favour such a move, yet our politicians seem incapable of bringing forward legislation that would give the people what they want.

I would also have a referendum on the question of life sentences for murder and other terrible crimes because again I think the vast majority of voters believe that a life prison sentence should mean what it says, generally speaking. 

As for Chukka Umanna, who is one of Labour's better performers, he needs to realise that few things if life are guaranteed, that a degree of uncertainty goes with the territory and should never be allowed to trump democracy. 

Tony Blair, on the other hand, had his chance to hold a referendum but pulled his punches in the face of opposition from Gordon Brown who also fluffed the chance to call a referendum on Scottish independence on his own terms.

It took a Conservative Prime Minister in David Cameron to do the right thing and while it would be mad to try and run a country on the basis of never ending referendums, in my view there is an irresistible case for putting big issues directly and more regularly to the voters.

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