HUHNE PUBLISHES ALL-PARTY PAMPHLET ON SAVING PARTIES

4.17.57pm UTC (GMT +0000) Tue 16th Jan 2007

Eastleigh MP Chris Huhne joined with other senior politicians from the Conservative and Labour parties today to launch a book discussing the future and survival of political parties.

"The key issue is why people are becoming less interested in politics and how this trend can be reversed"

Mr Huhne discussed the future of our politics with Conservative shadow leader of the House of Commons Theresa May and former Labour general secretary Matt Carter in a book published by "Unlock Democracy". The three were brought together by broadcaster and former Labour NEC member Tony Robinson.

Mr Huhne said: "The key issue is why people are becoming less interested in politics and how this trend can be reversed".

Mr Huhne said that one of the key problems was that the centralisation of decisions in London meant that local people were unable to hold decision-takers to account for public services, and that led to disillusion and disconnectedness. He also stressed the reaction to an election result that gave Labour - as the party apparently committed to fairness - 55 per cent of the MPs with just 35 per cent of the votes.

Theresa May sees part of the problem as lying in the struggle that party politics has faced adjusting to the post-Cold War era. Matt Carter identifies the "privatisation of politics," where people are increasingly setting up their own campaign groups and supporting single issues, rather than turning to political parties and elected representatives. There was however a consensus that the onus is on political parties to respond and adapt to the needs of the modern political climate.

In his introduction, Director of Unlock Democracy Peter Facey said,

"As well as their wealth of experience as political operators, the participants each brought a different perspective to the discussion. The discussion grapples with tough subjects, ranging from the decline of ideology to the structures of political parties and from electoral reform to localisation. The ideas they put forward are as varied as they are inspiring.

"One thing remains which remains clear, is that there are no easy solutions. If our polity is to be revived it will take a dedicated effort from every political party and from every politician and party organiser."

Electronic copies of the pamphlet are available online: http://www.unlockdemocracy.org.uk/docs/FutureOfPoliticalPartiesPRESS.pdf