Conservative Party: Vote 'No' to AV today

Today our country goes to the polls to vote on whether we should change our voting system.

In an exclusive email to members and supporters, the Prime Minister said that unless enough people go out and vote, Britain could sleepwalk into a system that damages our democracy permanently.

He outlined five key reasons why you must vote 'No' today:

1. AV is unfair. With First Past the Post (our current system), everybody gets one vote - it's One Person, One Vote. But under AV, supporters of extreme parties like the BNP would get their votes counted many times, while people who vote for one of the mainstream candidates would only get their vote counted once.
2. AV lets the loser win. With First Past the Post, the candidate with the most votes wins. But under AV, the person who finishes second or even third could be declared the winner.
3. AV is expensive. Calculating the results is a long, complicated process, which would cost the taxpayer millions.
4. AV is discredited. Only three countries in the world use AV - Fiji, Australia and Papua New Guinea - and in Australia, 6 out of 10 voters want to get rid of it. First Past the Post, on the other hand, is used by half the planet, from the world's biggest democracy - India - to the world's most powerful democracy - America.
5. AV takes power away from people and gives it to politicians. Our current system lets you kick dead-duck governments out on their ear - like in 1979 and last year. Under AV, that sort of people power would be much less likely. It would mean more grey areas in election results, and more opportunities for tired politicians to cling on to power long after their time. Just think - if we'd had AV last year, Gordon Brown could still be in Downing Street.