Mr. Speaker, I do not have a problem with the current system when it comes to the disclosure of votes, because, quite frankly, I have sometimes seen one candidate receive a very small percentage of the votes and I would not want to see that candidate embarrassed by having the vote totals disclosed.
The current system, as my hon. colleague knows, is simply that if there not a 50%-plus-1 absolute outright winner, the candidate with the fewest votes is taken off the ballot. If memory serves me well, I believe that unless a candidate receives a minimum of 5% of the total votes cast, the name of that person is also taken off of the ballot. I think that is sufficient. I do not believe that there should be the added element of disclosing the exact vote totals.
However, in a preferential ballot, we would avoid all of that because one ballot, and only one ballot, would have to be filled out. After the counting has been completed, a candidate will have been elected. That is a far simpler, far more efficient, and far more beneficial system for this place to adopt.