David Blunkett: Labour must accept the judgment of the people and begin to build up trust again

This is true in spades when you are dealing with a global recession in which everywhere else in the world is affected – but your own

electorate has no-one else to blame but you.

That is why everyone, including those who have been vitriolic about Gordon Brown, should have the decency to say "thank you" for his tremendous contribution to getting nations to work together over the last two years to combat what otherwise would have been a global depression.

It is now the moment for the Labour Party to reflect on what has happened – but far more importantly, what the future holds.

There isn't a Labour supporter who would not rather see a Labour Government than David Cameron's Tories take over. That isn't at issue.

I, above all, appreciate how upset many good people will be that we couldn't thwart the Conservatives. But I'm convinced that winning clear support has to be better than resorting to temporary and fragile stitch-ups. The behaviour of the Lib Dems throughout all this has been nothing short of scandalous.

What has been taking place is exactly what we would get if we had fully-fledged proportional representation. The alternative vote is merely a modest tweak to what we have now, with single-member constituencies and each MP having a majority of the votes cast in their area.

Anything beyond that and we have the kind of chaos we've seen since last Thursday after every election – with the Lib Dems playing the pivotal role in an endeavour to get anything they wanted and to prevent anything they didn't!

To have a functioning democracy, you need a number of essentials. You need the consent of the people (in my view, that means those who got the most votes and the largest number of seats must – even with a minority – come closest to this).

You need a form of stability that allows you to make decisions, not on a nightly basis depending on who votes which way in the Commons, but with some certainty about a coherent programme and the ability to govern.

Thirdly, you need to last long enough for the electorate to be able to make a sensible decision when we do come to voting again. I would have hated to see Labour punished for having hung on to office in the face of a rejection, painful as it is, by a substantial proportion of the voters.

I want an open contest for the new Labour leader. A real debate about what we stand for; whose voice we are reflecting in Parliament; and a radical vision of the future that genuinely responds to the needs and aspirations of the British people.

Politics has to be more than manoeuvres inside the Palace of

Westminster, or deals struck between political parties who normally wouldn't give each other the time of day. That's why I believe that regenerating and rejuvenating a connection with people across the country, creating a real trust in and belief that politics can change the world from the bottom up, is the way forward.

In the present situation, it is also possible to mobilise within Parliament against the most unacceptable and unpopular measures. In other words, to reflect the fact that whilst the Tories have the most seats, they didn't win the General Election outright.

So, it is possible to protect the most vulnerable against the worst cutbacks and damaged public services; and at the same time present to the electorate a real alternative of hope and optimism and a future majority Government.

In the end, of course, democracy is about three things.

It's about politicians hearing and reflecting the will of the people; electing those who we believe will reflect our will and our voice most clearly; and, difficult as it is for those at the receiving end, it is also about the ability of the electorate to remove a government. After all, the claim of every dictator resisting removal from office is that only they are the ones who can "provide stability".

That is why I have been arguing since last Friday that we can forge a new trust and connection with the electorate – but it has to be by accepting the verdict of the people. For us in Yorkshire, the

challenges are clear. We have a population the size of Scotland; but we do not have the share of the national cake allocated to the Scots. We do not have a separate Parliament; and we do not have a minority party prepared to do a deal purely on what is in the best interests of Yorkshire.

That, regrettably, has not been on the Lib Dem agenda – nor, as far as I can ascertain, has it been in the minds of the Lib Dem MPs in Leeds or Redcar on Teesside.

Defending the interests of Yorkshire people and Yorkshire businesses is therefore down to all those who care about and seek to provide a voice for our area. On the economy, on public services and investment and, of course, on skills and jobs for the future, we rightly should be judged on how we speak up for those we represent.

David Blunkett is a former Home Secretary and the Labour MP for Sheffield Brightside.