A TV debate will not give voters more choice

So Peter Mandelson tells us Gordon Brown could handle a TV debate during the elections against David Cameron and Nick Clegg. Mr Cameron has responded by saying he wants one.

This returns me to a theme I’ve visited before on Snowblog, and that relates to the nature of our own presidential politics.

Britain’s democratic deficit extends from an unelected head of state, an unelected prime minister (by anyone other than his own constituency), and an unelected upper house.

The fact is that in a British general election, voters do take into account the competing party leaders. And yet they cannot vote for them, other than by voting for a local candidate who represents the same party.

The very suggestion by Peter Mandelson that there could be a TV debate between the leaders suggests offering viewers a choice they are unable to act directly upon. This would seem to me to underpin the need for the simplest constitutional reform, that of directly electing the prime minister.

It would immediately open up the political system, reduce the overall power of the parties, do nothing to undermine the head of state, and everything to enhance accountability.