e-voting could reverse voter apathy, says Hoon

Geoff Hoon, the leader of the House of Commons, has called for "further examination" of e-voting along with proposals for compulsory voting in order to reverse the decline in turnout at elections.

Speaking at an Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) event on 4 July, 2005, Hoon highlighted plans to set up an online electoral register, electronic counting systems, and internet and text message voting.

"Millions vote using text messages in the reality TV shows that sometimes seem to dominate our television screens. Would it really be such a huge step to extend this option to voting in general elections?" he said.

He focused on the work done in Swindon during 2003 to allow polling via mobile e-voting kiosks in residential care facilities and community centres. Hoon said the pilot increased turnout but admitted figures were only up to 30 per cent.

"I know that many have fears about the security of internet voting. The threats from computer hackers in the online banking industry are well documented. There are also concerns about the digital divide. Not everyone has access to a computer or a mobile telephone. But electronic voting is an issue that demands further examination," he told the IPPR.

Electronic voting pilots were held across local authorities until 2003 but were put on hold over the last two years as they were thought to be too complex for European and general elections.

Hoon also said that international experience had shown that the most effective way to increase electoral turnout was to make voting compulsory. He said that the attendance at the last general election, 61.5 per cent, was below the level of regular 75 per cent-plus turnouts that had been the norm since 1945.

He said that, in contrast, in countries such as Australia, where voting was compulsory, turnout could exceed 90 per cent. He blamed a sense of "alienation" from the political system among people who felt that voting made no difference.

However, chief executive of the Electoral Reform Society, Ken Ritchie, said it would be "pointless" to make voting compulsory under the current system: "At the last election at least two-thirds of constituencies were a foregone conclusion. At the moment so many votes simply do not count. How are you going to sell this to the public unless you change the voting system?"