The local elections are just a few weeks away now and will follow the first-past-the-post voting system, the same system used for electing MPs to parliament.

The candidate who receives the most votes in each ward is elected as the representative for that ward under this voting system.

Reading currently has 30 Labour councillors, 10 Conservative councillors, four Green councillors and two Lib Dem councillors.

READ MORE: Elections 2021 - every Reading Borough Council candidate

But how would Reading Borough Council's (RBC) structure look if Proportional Representation (PR), seen by some as a fairer method, was introduced?

Under PR, seats are allocated in proportion to the number of votes cast.

For example, if one party came second in every ward under FPTP they would get zero councillors elected, but under PR all of these votes would be added up and get them seats on the council.

Here is the current structure (election donut below):

Looking at the 2019 local elections, Reading’s Green Party and Lib Dem politicians would have gained the most from a change to PR.

Under the PR system, 6.25 per cent of the vote share would be needed to get one of the 16 seats which were on offer at the May 2019 Reading Borough Council (RBC) elections.

The Labour Party’s 39.4 per cent share of the vote got them nine seats but would have got them six seats under PR.

The Conservatives’ 25.8 per cent share of the vote got them four seats which would not change under PR.

The Green Party’s 19.1 per cent share of the vote got them two seats, but would have got them three seats under PR.

The Lib Dems’ 14.7 per cent of the vote got them one seat would have got them three seats under PR.

The only other parties were UKIP and the Liberal Party, both of which only stood one candidate and would not have got enough votes for a seat.

However, if they put forward candidates in all 16 wards, they may stand a chance under the PR system.

Labour would still have held a strong majority, despite losing three seats.

But if Proportional Representation were to be introduced, there would likely be an all-out election, where all seats are contested.

At an all-out election for the current 46 seats, similar results would lead to:

  • Labour getting 18 seats compared to their current 30
  • The Conservatives getting 12 seats compared to their current 10
  • The Green Party getting nine seats compared to their current four
  • The Lib Dems getting seven seats compared to their current two councillors

Here is how it would look (election donut below):

Labour would likely need to form a coalition with one of the other parties under these circumstances to control the council.

There would also be opportunities for the other parties to form coalitions with each other.

This very subject was brought up by Green councillor Josh Williams in February this year at a Full Council meeting.

Cllr Williams said the first-past-the-post system “means we often get councils that do not represent what people voted for”.

He asked Councillor Jason Brock, leader of RBC, if he agreed a more proportional voting system is need and if he would lobby for a new system.

READ MORE: Local election 2021 swing seats - the wards in Reading that could be most closely fought

Cllr Brock said he would support a shift to the Supplementary Vote system used for the Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner election, which take second preferences of voters into account.

But he said he does not see it as a priority, feeling a drive to increase voter turnout “is far more appropriate”.

It would be much more difficult to predict how the different parties would fare under a Supplementary Vote system as it would involve understanding what people’s second choice preferences would likely be.