Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK, has initiated a boycott of key parliamentary votes, claiming that his party is being unfairly excluded from crucial Commons processes. Farage, 60, announced that his party’s five MPs would refuse to participate in the elections for Select Committee chairs, accusing the system of failing to represent the democratic will of voters.
Despite securing 4.1 million votes in the general election, Reform UK has been denied representation on any of the influential Select Committees. In contrast, the Liberal Democrats, who garnered 3.5 million votes, will receive seats on these committees. Sir Ed Davey’s party, which supports proportional representation (PR), has 72 MPs, securing them a place on key committees.
Farage expressed his frustration on social media, where Clacton MP echoed his sentiment: “Reform MPs boycotted the elections for Select Committee Chairs in Parliament tonight. Despite us winning more votes than the Lib Dems, we are not allowed a single seat. This is a failure of democracy.”
The results of the Select Committee elections saw Labour taking charge of 18 backbencher groupings, while Conservative MPs will chair five committees. Additionally, Liberal Democrats Layla Moran and Jamie Stone were appointed to the Health and Petitions committees respectively, both in unopposed contests facilitated by the Speaker.
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