Tactical voting and the alternative vote

One of the problems with the upcoming referendum on our electoral system is that few people really believe that the alternative vote (AV) would be much of an improvement on first past the post. The Liberal Democrats – now pushing for AV – have long eschewed it themselves, in favour of the single transferable vote. Pragmatists say that it is the best reform that can be hoped for under difficult circumstances, and should be supported as some sort of posy-picking exercise on the primrose path to greater success in the future. Which I think means that those in favour of reform will have to vote tactically. You have to laugh, really.