I've seen and heard many times an objection to PR and by extension to AV that it would allow the BNP a taste of power and that we're better off with a system that keeps out the minorities of extremists.
I've got a short answer, a medium answer and a long answer to this.
The short answer, not a very satisfying one, but an immediate killer to the argument, is that the BNP are against AV.
Via the aforementioned article, we have clear evidence of that. http://isupportav.co.uk/2010/11/the-bnp-are-campaigning-against-av/ . The article even gives a sound hypothesis as to why, something that has escaped me up 'til now. My own idea was that they were blinkered traditionalists not aware of what's good for them, but it seems I may have been some way off the mark.
The medium answer, which may be another contributing factor to why the BNP are against AV is that they actually do themselves more harm when they're in power. Take the Barking Council as an example. In desperation, not feeling that Labour or any of the other big parties could be trusted, voters turned to the BNP hoping for something a little bit different. The BNP had their platform, and they aired their views and suddenly no-one was in any doubt as to what they were really about. All BNP councillors were voted out at the first opportunity. So I don't see the BNP actually getting a seat as a massive problem.
The long answer (by which I mean the most important really), is that having a voting system to keep out any party, however objectionable they may be, or to give an advantage to any party, however good they may be, is undemocratic and wrong. The way to keep a party out is to ensure that people don't want to vote for them, not to make it so that voting for them is futile. Bearing in mind that it's possible the mechanics of FPTP suit the BNP better than AV this at first glance looks like a contradiction, but in truth I'm looking at the bigger picture here. I'm not looking at which system gives the BNP the best chance, or even which system gives the smallest parties as similar a chances as possible to the biggest ones. I'm looking at which system gives the VOTERS a chance to have their say regardless of which party they want to vote for.
A voting system is for voters, not parties, and looking at it from the point of view of any particular party, large or small, good or bad, is never going to lead you to a conclusion about which system is the most democratic, fairest or best for the UK. So I'm afraid if you're thinking "which voting system gives my party the best chance of winning?"or "which voting system will help keep out that party I really really don't like?" I'm afraid you're looking at things from the wrong angle. Party leaders come and go, policies change. New Labour is an excellent example of this. And of course not every Conservative Leader is Margaret Thatcher either. The same party isn't necessarily always going to be right for you. But being able to vote for what you want IS always going to be right for you. Who knows, one day, decades from now the BNP may be a breath of fresh air. Or far more likely, another minority party could come along who really IS what we've been looking for. Do you want to risk shutting them out now just because of a load of racists spoiling things for everyone else? I certainly don't.
You have to TRUST everyone to vote for what they want. Under a fair voting system if we end up with a government we don't like we only have ourselves to blame. We'll have got what we deserve. Until then we're governed by people whom only a minority of us have shown any support and we're certainly not getting what we asked for and probably not what we deserve either.
Don't just decide that the general public and most voters are stupid. Don't dumb down for them. Don't assume you know better than them and you have to hold their hands in the polling station and tell them how to vote. Several No2AV campaigners are doing just that with some of the ludicrous statements their coming out with, but we are better than that. Say Yes to Fairer Votes. Say Yes to AV.
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