United Kingdom: Logica tests Scottish e-voting technology | ZDNet UK

Along with technology supplier Logica it held a dummy run to count 160,000 ballot papers in Perth on Friday. This was the latest stage in testing the system, which uses off-the-shelf software from Opt2Vote.

Aileen Campbell, the Scottish government minister for local government planning, said: “Compared to a manual count which would take at least two to three days, e-counting will be much faster and more transparent. This test is a crucial milestone in the project to make e-counting a reality in 2012.”

Logica is providing the programme management, training services, printing services and more than 40 project and count centre managers for the election under a contract awarded in October 2010.

United Kingdom: Cabinet Office Unveils New UK Voter Registration Process | eGov Monitor

New steps voters will be required to take to be included on the electoral register are set out today by the Government.

The Individual Electoral Registration White Paper details the process for moving to individual voter registration, replacing the existing system of household registration. The change is designed to modernise the electoral system and tackle fraud.

Mark Harper MP, Minister for Political and Constitutional Reform, said Britain is almost alone in retaining a system of household registration, which is now widely considered to be outdated and vulnerable to fraud. Moving to individual electoral registration will help to ensure our system is more robust against fraud and gives every individual control over whether or not they are included on the register.

United Kingdom: Scottish National Party snub ‘means poll will not be policed’ | Scotsman.com News

Funding for the independence referendum campaign will not be properly policed because the SNP is refusing to allow the Electoral Commission to be involved, the UK government has claimed.

The SNP yesterday said it intended to press ahead with plans contained in the 2009 white paper – which state that the Electoral Commission would not have oversight over campaign funding. Instead Holyrood will set up a Scottish Referendum Commission. But yesterday the Conservative Scotland Office minister David Mundell hit out at the SNP’s plans, saying it would “hardly inspire confidence” in the campaign.

United Kingdom: Chair Of Electoral Commission Calls On Government To Consider Central Co-Ordination At Welsh Elections | eGov monitor

Jenny Watson, Chair of the Electoral Commission and Chief Counting Officer at the recent referendums on the Parliamentary Voting System, and the powers of the Welsh Assembly, will today propose that consideration should be given to introducing greater central coordination of elections, learning from the structure that was in place at those referendums.

The administration of the referendum was significantly different than that at elections with the Commission taking on a central oversight role and the Chief Counting Officer able to direct returning officers and monitor their performance ahead of polling day to achieve best practice. In contrast UK parliamentary general elections are administered locally by returning officers, with no national coordination. The Commission’s role is limited to offering guidance.