It is time to vote
I am not referring to the Eurovision song contest either, and no I am not interested whatsoever in a competition that is politically motivated, which also results in potential hearing problems later on.
Actually, it’s more to do with the European and local elections being held across the UK. For the benefit of our foreign friends, the current political situation here is less than tenable. Without going into too much detail, we all know politicians in general cannot be trusted but this goes far beyond that. Senior ministers seems to think it is ethically sound to claim expenses on things such as a new flat screen TV or a toilet seat, using tax payer’s money. Along with our current financial situation, this is going to raise more than a few eyebrows. Apparently, this is within the so-called parliamentary rules, which are undergoing a massive overhaul right now.
Barring the fact that each voting option laid before me is as dire as one another, I am wondering why we cannot have a voting system online. Taking time out of work or disrupting my plans for the week, to vote for honourably questionable individuals, isn’t something I want to be doing. I can say the same thing for the general election next year, there is of course the hazard of voting fraud. Even so, in comparison you also have the potential for vote rigging when using the old-fashioned paper format. Unfortunately, our country is notorious for failed I.T projects costing millions, so I can understand the scepticism when E-Voting was initially trialled a few years ago. The problem we have is accessibility for all and security. Without these two fundamentals it will not work.
On another note, for the people who are au fait with the political turmoil here… am I the only one that feels slightly uneasy that the MPs guilty of the above expenses debacle are the very MPs being judge, jury and executioner for their crimes? We need an independent judiciary or just dissolve parliament altogether and bring the general election forward. Maybe this is just wishful thinking on my part…
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email Tags: E-voting, MP expenses