Mandatory voting

[Nataby]

Then there really would be proportional representation in parliament

Please explain why I would be confused

I do think that everyone should vote. I am advocating that making it mandatory would ensure that parliament as much as possible MP's represent a high proportion of the populate so that first part the post system can remain

Democracy isn't FORCING people to vote, part of being a democratic society means that everyone has the opportunity to participate but equally, they don't have to.

It's also a logistical nightmare. I am very much against compulsory voting.

Folk that don't vote IMO usually don't because they are totally disenfranchised with the whole process. Forcing them to vote may end up in BNP getting into power......

You could still have your democratic choice of not voting. With a tick on the ballot paper to say you don't want any of the choices offered. This will be within a system where you can vote online

Why do they need to go and tick a box? Not voting sends the same message. If you were enfranchised and interested you would go and vote, if you don't it is saying you either don't care or don't want any of the choices.

Online voting by itself would probably increase participation.

It's also a lot of Bother at the moment even with postal voting for ppl to vote. Voting day should be a bit like census day

Gaston; that is the usual reaso given for poor turnout, but I think, more could be done to engage the public.

I would not support an online voting system.

Aside from disenfranchising the most vulnerable in society (who tend not to have access to computers, or the elderly), it is far, far too open to abuse (coerced voting as someone could be over your shoulder, hacked voting, accidental outages/crashes/lost data, deliberate manipulation from sophisticated cyber-attack, not necessarily from within UK).

I don't support mandatory voting either - anywhere other than Australia have it?

Of course more could be done to engage people, we have a horrible political class and a house of commons largely full of upper class white men.

Lots of changes need to be made to get people engaged but I think there are many other things we can try before we make voting compulsory. Also agree with meditrina about the flaws to online voting although I think in principal it would make people more likely to participate but I also think (certain) people might see it as the equivalent of voting in a poll on Facebook.

Good concerns Medtrina, I think these could be addressed though.lots of secured services and transactions can be done online now. It would have to be similar to how postal voting works now. Just one of the ways of voting not the only way

As an IT professional I have to say that online voting is a bad idea. Meditrina touches on many of the problems we'd have to address. As I often tell my management, just because we can, doesn't mean we should!

Plus I am also against mandatory voting. I remember trying to have a political discussion with my ex about who she'd vote for. "Tony Blair" she said. Why? I asked. "Cos he has a nice smile!" That was it. She couldn't name a single policy of any party. She didn't even realise we were at war in Iraq. She didn't even know that we'd been there a decade previous. "The first gulf war? We were there before?"

But ask her who Katie Price was snogging that week then she was the fountain of knowledge.

I've been convinced since then that people like her (and alas there are many like her), the best thing for them to do is not to vote at all.

Still, she was a good shag though!

Only tax payers should have the vote. Discuss.

I could go from being a taxpayer today to someone who's DP leaves them tomorrow, I end up having to give up work tomorrow to care for DCs, etc etc.....am I to be denied a vote? Everyones circumstances can change at the drop of a hat.....and it's wise to always remember this.....

Absolutely true, circumstances do change. Denying non taxpayers the vote would be a crude tool, but that applies to a lot of legislation.

If people are too lazy to vote, then they won't have their voices heard. That's their problem.

Of course voting should not be hard - but there is nothing too hard about going to a polling booth, putting a X in a box, and putting the ballot paper into the box.

Limiting the vote to taxpayers would be very foolish, in my opinion - and I say that despite Labour's benefit-addicted hordes!

Niceguy, the purporse of democracy is that everyone gets a vote so the onus is on politicians to explain their policy. It's very easy for ppl to loose interest in the current system as there is no real association with not voting to life down civvies street

K999 and nice guy, clearly I have more fate in the general population than u do

I presume you mean "faith"?

I stand corrected

I don't think forcing people to vote will achieve much. Folk will either spoil their ballot papers or just not vote, in which case what are the sanctions to be? And who will police it? And how much time and money will that cost the State??

Perhaps you are right Coconutmummy. i have a rather low opinion of the general population.

I find most will vote for whatever gives them the best deal NOW without caring or even thinking about how the policy is funded and the long term sustainability.

Some will vote for a party regardless of policy.

I don't mind which party people vote for so long as their vote is cast for a policy rather than out of ignorance.