One of the biggest problems with the first-past-the-post system that we use now is the wastage of votes. Unless people vote for the winning candidate, their votes are essentially wasted. In 2005, according to Make My Vote Count, over 70% of votes went to losing candidates or were surplus to the winners’ requirements to be elected.

This not only means that over 70% of voters are unrepresented in Parliament, it also has the knock-on effect of discouraging many more people from voting at all. Why vote if you know that your choice of candidate or party has no chance of winning a seat?

The Regional Top-Up system ends this problem by using nearly every vote for the allocation of the Regional MPs.