Debates that work for the voters

Unlock Democracy believes it’s time the UK had an independent Debates Commission to organise leaders’ debates at General Elections.

Debates should be a key part of election campaigns where millions of people can see leaders challenged on their policies and vision for the future. But as we will see, they have a spotted history since their belated UK introduction in 2010 (in other countries they’ve been going for decades!).

In the 2010 General Election there were 3 debates between the 3 main party leaders (Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat).

In the 2015 General Election things started to get more complicated. There was a 2 way debate between Labour and Conservative leaders. There was a 7 way debate of the parties standing in England, Wales and Scotland. There was a 5 way opposition party debate (with no Government representative) and finally there was a 3 way debate along 2010 lines.

In 2017, no head to head debates took place. The primary reason was the refusal of the Conservative Party to take part, but the nature of the snap election also meant that there had been no preparations between broadcasters and political parties.

In 2019, the election was once again held at short notice. Just one head to head debate was held between the Conservative and Labour leaders. A collection of other debates were held, but none like the 2010 or 2015 debates.

So far in 2024, we have seen one head to head debate between the Conservative and Labour Leaders. There has also been a 7 way debate (Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrat, Green, Reform, Plaid and SNP), but the leaders of the Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats all sent substitutes. Several more debates are planned with a varying cast list and formats.

The format of the head to head debate where the two leaders were given 45 seconds to answer each question has been widely criticised.

We think all of this is a deeply unsatisfactory situation FOR VOTERS.

Politics and elections are more stage managed than ever. Media interviews often have to have questions vetted by the party in advance. Many parts of our print media will broadcast their favoured party’s message without a challenge. Social media and direct mail allow parties to broadcast their message directly to voters unchallenged. Even visits made by politicians are strictly managed to ensure no difficult questions are asked to party leaders.

TV debates are the exception to this - one of the few parts of the campaign where leaders can be challenged about their policies. That’s why they are so important. The public recognise this and have watched debates in the millions.

But across now 5 General Elections, we can see no consistency at all around debates - the format, who takes part and even if they happen.

We need to get the format and the number of debates right. We need to get the participation in debates right too.

Participation is another area of controversy. Back in 2010, when the election was called, opinion polls showed that 89% of voters were backing the Conservatives, Labour or Liberal Democrats. That made UK wide debates with the three main parties a legitimate choice.

However in the years since, we have seen a more diverse group of parties winning significant public support. At the start of the 2015 election campaign, both UKIP and the Green Party were doing well in opinion polls and they were included in some of the debates for the first time. 2015 also saw the first 1-on-1 debate between just the leaders of Labour and the Conservative party.

There are so many advantages built into the UK political system for the two biggest parties, did they really need an extra advantage that these two way debates bring? Can an entire nation’s aspirations really come down to just two choices?

We don’t think so.

So Unlock Democracy is putting forward its own proposal for how debates should work in future elections. They should be independent and fair. They must give voters a real choice.

We believe that a new Independent Debates Commission should be set up under the oversight of the broadcast regulator, OfCom.

Similar commissions already exist in other countries, notably Canada and the USA.

The Commission would organise two main UK wide debates in each election, along with nation specific debates in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland where different parties contest the elections. It would decide who would broadcast these debates.

On who gets to take part, a simple formula could be used - a three month polling average for the parties at the moment the election is called. If a party is averaging over 5% of the vote, then they are in the debate. We believe this provides the right balance of representing a wide range of views, whilst ensuring the debates don’t become too unwieldy.

Here’s what would have happened had this formula been in place for this election -

None of this would stop additional debates being held by other broadcasters, but these would be the official debates.

Once this election is over, we will be writing to the new Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition asking them to support our plan. You can add your support to the letter by clicking below.

TV debates are an important part of our General Elections, but whether they have been held or not has been wildly inconsistent. In 2017 and 2019, the debate process almost broke down altogether, denying voters the opportunity to view and  judge their leaders. 2024 has been a more mixed picture so far.

All this has not been good for democracy. We need to make sure that’s fixed for the next General Election, and that we have a way of choosing which debates take place that’s fair, independent and provides voters the information they need.