Blair to come out on voting reform

Blair is in the happy position of seeing Labour's selfish sectional interest coincide with the interest of our democracy as a whole. He must, surely, be beginning to realise what he should do . . . take a deep breath and lunge towards reform. - Leading article page 11

Tony Blair, the Labour leader, is expected to declare his hand before the general election on the question of changing the system for electing MPs.

He will come under pressure to spell out where he stands as talks get under way between senior Labour and Liberal Democrat figures on plans for the referendum on electoral reform which Labour has promised.

Indications that Mr Blair will clarify his personal views come amid growing signs of parliamentary co-operation between Labour and the Liberal Democrats, for whom a "fair" voting system is a central demand. The offices of Mr Blair and Paddy Ashdown, the Liberal Democrat leader, regularly consult each other before the twice-weekly Prime Minister's Questions in the Commons, The Independent has learned.

Mr Blair has previously said he was "not persuaded" of the case for proportional representation (PR), and has sent mixed signals about other reforms which fall short of full PR.

He has also said that he would take a clear position at the time of a referendum. The pressure on Mr Blair has also been increased by the breakdown of the unofficial truce on the issue among Labour MPs, who last week recruited signatories to rival Commons motions. Two frontbenchers have joined the fray, with Derek Fatchett, a foreign affairs spokesman, defending the existing system, and Janet Anderson, shadow Minister for Women, advocating change. Backbench supporters of electoral reform were delighted when Tory MPs started to sign Mr Fatchett's motion.

Earlier this year several of those close to Mr Blair signalled their support for allowing voters to mark ballot papers with numbers in order of preference, a system called the Alternative Vote which would boost the Liberal Democrats without giving them full PR. This compromise is believed to be acceptable to Jack Straw, Labour's home affairs spokesman, who would be responsible for the legislation in government.

A senior adviser to Mr Ashdown confirmed yesterday that there were discussions between the two leaders before each Tuesday and Thursday session, resulting in co-ordinated opposition attack on the government. Mr Ashdown wants to ensure that his question is covered by the broadcasters, which usually means it has to be on the same subject as Mr Blair's. Mr Ashdown followed up Mr Blair's most recent clash with John Major, last Tuesday, with a sharper version of the same question on the health service.

The pace of Lib-Lab co- operation has accelerated markedly this parliamentary session. It opened with a joint call by Donald Dewar and Archie Kirkwood, the two parties' chief whips, for tougher action on sleaze. Until then, there had been only one joint news conference, in January, when the foreign affairs spokesmen Robin Cook and Menzies Campbell attacked the government over the Scott Report on the sale of arms to Iraq.

But at the end of last month Mr Cook and Robert Maclennan, the Liberal Democrat president, announced a joint committee of both parties to thrash out a "common programme" of democratic reforms for after the election.

Jack Straw and Alex Carlile, the two parties' home affairs spokesmen, last week presented to the Home Office joint plans to ban combat knives, and both parties have called for a ban on the private use of handguns.

Equally important, however, have been the personal contacts, growing in frequency and warmth, between Mr Blair and Mr Ashdown.

Mr Blair attended a party at the Ashdowns' house in London to celebrate Mr Ashdown's 55th birthday in February. The Ashdowns have also been entertained at the Blairs' house in Islington, north London.