>>>>>>>Representation in the government should be proportional to the number of votes won.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Absolutely!
>>>>>>
>>>>>>There are some who keep trying to bring in proportional representation, but it never seems to get any traction. Surprising? No.
>>>>>
>>>>>Proportional representation is hardly a panacea, especially in parlimentary systems. It frequently leads to coalition governments where the minority parties wield power far in excess of their actual representation.
>>>>
>>>>Nothing is a panacea when it comes to parliamentary governments, but I think it makes far more sense than what we now have. And personally I think that coalition governments can work far better than majority governments because it places better checks and balances on the ideological whims that you sometimes get with majorities.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>"Be that as it may though, could you please explain what you mean by "minority parties wield power far in excess of their actual representation". I'd have thought they wield power in exact proportion to their actual representation."
>>>
>>>Imagine a Parliment of 200 seats. The biggest party has approximately 75 seats. A party with which it co-exists peacefully has 20 seats. To form a government they need to add six more seats. This small party will now probably get a ministry. In addition, by leaving the coalition they could bring about the fall of the government. All this power comes to a party representing 2% of the parlimentary seats.
>>>
>>>You can look at Italy and Israel as examples.
>>
>>I hope you don't mean them as good examples. Both countries are known for chaotic governments.
>
>I think that's his point.

Exactly.