Notes

Disadvantages of FPTP
Minority of the vote: In most constituencies more people (in total) vote against the winning candidate than for them. Sometimes an MP can be elected on a vote as low as only 35%, a minority, of the vote. The winning party is also usually elected by less than 50% of the voters. In 2015, the Conservative Party won the election and formed the government but only 36.9% of the people who voted chose to support the Conservatives.
First past the post voting system used in UK Parliament
Smaller parties do not gain fair representation: In 2015, UKIP polled 12.6% of the vote but returned only 1 MP. In Scotland, Labour received 24.3% of the vote and returned 1 MP, while the SNP received 50% of the vote and returned 56 of the 59 Scottish MPs.
Tactical voting: It is argued that FPTP encourages tactical voting (or people not bothering to vote) as they think their vote will have little chance of helping elect their candidate. For example, in a constituency or seat that usually returns a Conservative MP (sometimes called a ‘safe’ seat), there is little point in a voter choosing Labour as they are unlikely to have their candidate elected. Where this happens, and it happens in many constituencies, people may vote not for a candidate they prefer but against a candidate they dislike. Two-thirds of constituencies in the UK are described as safe seats.