To mark the 100-year anniversary of women winning the right to vote, I joined other MEPs, MPs and leading political figures in a 24-hour fast to recall the extraordinary sacrifices brave women made but also to spotlight the need to reform our electoral system so that every vote counts.  

The South West is dominated by Conservative politicians. In Cornwall, Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire, there are only Conservative MPs, although only around half the people who live in these counties vote Conservative.

The result is that devastating cuts to our services and an extreme form of Brexit are being foisted upon us when they have not been democratically chosen. 

Many people I know have voted Green all their lives but have never had anybody to represent them at Westminster.

I was elected to the European Parliament under a system of proportional representation, achieving over 11 per cent of the vote. This shows the strong level of support for Green politics currently suppressed by our unfair system.

A PR system also encourages politicians from a wide range of parties to work together and seek compromise, something I witness daily as an MEP.

People are all too aware that our democracy is failing us. The gap between politicians and the people they represent seems to have grown ever wider. A fair voting system will help revitalise our democracy and make sure that MPs really represent the people who vote for them.

We can best honour the struggle of the suffragettes by continuing our own struggle to make all votes count.

Molly Scott Cato, South West Green Party MEP, European Parliament.