Mark Borkowski and Matt Golding explain why AV campaign has been a damp squib
Speaking to Radio 4’s Today programme Mark Borkowski, founder of Borkowski PR and Matt Golding, creative director of Rubber Republic attempt to explain the “great yawn” of British politics - the campaign to reform our electoral system.
It might be surprisingly low key but there is a momentous political debate taking place as to the future of Britain’s electoral system, should we stick with first past the post or plump for the Alternative Vote?
Borkowski : “Momentum hasn’t been generated. I think there’s been a great yawn across the nation and for a communications person this is very frustrating, you want to inject it into the bloodstream, you want people talking about it as a great conversation.
Unfortunately the great conversation at the moment is about a certain Royal wedding on Friday and this is the key week, prior to the vote, to get going on this and it just hasn’t. The 10 minute news cycle has not been ignited.”
Golding said: “It’s a tough issue to communicate at this time but both campaigns have managed to take what could have been an interesting political debate and turn it into patronising and slightly misleading argument points that make the issue seem more complicated than it is and make you feel like you’re being talked down to.
“A horse race is not a very good analogy for this and reducing it to an argument over whether we should be accidentally paying for porn is not a brilliant argument on the other side either. The most important thing is to make sure people understand what their options are, to treat them like grown-ups and to allow people to make the choices themselves.”
Borkowski noted: “We’re now looking at something which is in crisis to a certain extent. “ adding: “We’ve focused in on the soap opera of the uncomfortable relationship between David Cameron and Nick Clegg “
Golding concluded: “More could have been done to explain to people the importance of the vote itself and how this could change our voting system forever. There could have been more done to explain to people why this was an important issue to get out of bed for and as Mark was saying make that a bit more engaging.”