小分享：議員有病都有責任投票？

在維基上關於英國黨鞭制度 (whip system) 的條文內，寫了這麼一個故事：有一次國會表決正反雙方出現同票，執政工黨下令一位病危的議員坐白車都要趕到國會投票。

Former MP Joe Ashton remembered a case from the dying days of James Callaghan's government:

"I remember the famous case of Leslie Spriggs, the then-Member for St. Helens. We had a tied vote and he was brought to the House in an ambulance having suffered a severe heart attack. The two Whips went out to look in the ambulance and there was Leslie Spriggs laid there as though he was dead. I believe that John Stradling Thomas said to Joe Harper, 'How do we know that he is alive?' So he leaned forward, turned the knob on the heart machine, the green light went around, and he said, 'There, you've lost—it's 311.' That is an absolutely true story. It is the sort of nonsense that used to happen. No one believes it, but it is true."

所謂黨鞭，以前在別的文章都講過了，是指政黨中確保黨員按政黨立場投票的人員。尤其是在重要議案時，如果有黨員「走數」，就是黨鞭辦事不力，於是連用白車載病人回議會投票這樣的故事都有。

香港今次政改表決出現鬧劇，不知是哪位「黨鞭」辦事不力了。常常說不能照搬西方制度，不能搞甚麼政黨政治，也是呢，香港政客這樣 level，搬過來你都盞唔識玩，自己出醜啦。