[joeysteele]

Originally Posted by Sticks

But a no vote will kill PR stone dead for generations to come as it will give a massive vote for FPTP

However this is academic as the polls show a massive vote for the NO campaign since all people are seeing this as a chance to give Nick Clegg and the Liberal Democrats a thorough good kicking.

The way things are with Nick Clegg, if there were a referendum on whether we should slaughter everyone's first born child, and Nick Clegg was against that, there would be a massive vote in favour of slaughtering everyone's first born child, including votes from loving parents, just to give Nick Clegg and the Lib Dems thorough good kicking

The first part fo your post is right, it will kill the PR debate for a long time to come,
It is why with the enormous influence the Lib Dems had after the 2010 election that they will be seen to have have failed real change by at least trying to secure a treble option an any referendum,as to 1)keeping FPTP, or 2) Opting for AV, or 3) bringing in a full PR system.

The referendum could have been held later in the year with those questions fully detailed and the systems clearly shown.
The Lib Dems got the very least they could have with this referendum, despite the fact without their votes and support in Parliament the Conservatives could not get anything passed likely.

Nick Clegg jumped in for some minor Ministerial positions and an increase in salary for some in his party,he abandoned the PR dream of the Lib Dems and opted for this pathetic weak system but it still to be decided on a costly referendum too.
If he and the Lib Dems have put full PR on to the back boiler for another few decades at least,they deserve that to happen.

Although clearly not the case is the last part of your post,I think you are right in the sense that anything political from Nick Clegg,be it a policy idea or speech, will be taken by most voters with a pinch of salt,now thinking he is a man not to be believed or trusted and therefore he likely is the kiss of death to anything major in politics now.

I for one voted Lib Dem,I am very unlikely to do so again and I will never vote for them while Clegg is leader or has any high status still in the party.
To me they abused the power the voters gave them and should be cast into the political wilderness for that abuse of great trust put in them by those who voted for them.