§ Mr. HepburnTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent assessment has been made of the success of(a) the postal vote and (b) other experimental voting systems; and what assessment has been made of extending the postal vote to general elections. [57160]
616W
§ Dr. WhiteheadThe Electoral Commission began its evaluation on 3 May of the electoral pilot schemes which took place in the recent local elections, and will provide a detailed assessment of the impact of new voting methods to the Secretary of State by 2 August 2002. Early indications are that all-postal ballots can increase turnout and the various electronic means of voting were positively received. We will wish to consider the Commission's evaluations carefully before making decisions on the future use of postal voting in elections.