The eight local constituency results you published (Election results, Thursday, December 19) intrigued me enough to consult the House of Commons Library website, where I learned that of the 500,000 strong electorate, just over a quarter have no parliamentary representative because they chose not to take part in the electoral process.

Further, almost exactly one quarter have no parliamentary representative because of the very nature of the electoral process itself, i.e first- past-the-post

Thus, just less than half the electorate can claim to have any single individual in the House of Commons, who, according to Daniel Mahoney, Centre for Policy Studies, when itemising the benefits of the said process, ‘has a direct link to the constituency.’

Bearing in mind the observation of Professor Matt Cole, University of Birmingham, that we are governed by a system which evolved before the era of ‘mass party politics’.

In short, we have a 19th century solution to a 21st century challenge.

Assuming that that none of the four Conservative and four Labour MPs attains ministerial office and that the Parliament lasts for five pay-rise free years, we will have to pay them £3,178,720, before tax and National Insurance, in salaries and before any of them claims for a single bus fare or the upkeep of their moats.

Alex Copland

Pyrles Lane, Loughton