[LINK] E-voting tech trials ditched by [UK] government

[Bernard Robertson-Dunn]

E-voting tech trials ditched by government
2006 internet and SMS voting pilots binned...
By Andy McCue
Published: Friday 2 September 2005
Silicon.com
http://management.silicon.com/government/0,39024677,39151891,00.htm

The government has ditched plans for wide-ranging trials of internet and
SMS voting next year that are supposed to pave the way for e-voting
technology to be used at the next general election.

The e-voting trials were due to kick off in 2006
<http://management.silicon.com/government/0,39024677,39129337,00.htm> as
part of a two-year electoral modernisation project being run by the
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) but a tender inviting bids
from IT suppliers to run the projects next year has now been cancelled.

The ODPM said: "This notice has been cancelled as the government has
decided not to invite applications to conduct electronic electoral
modernisation pilots in 2006. All organisations that submitted an
expression of interest in the tender have been notified of the
cancellation."

The trials were scheduled to include internet, telephone, text message
and digital TV voting channels, electronic polling stations and vote
counting systems, voter verification technology and other electronic
services to "make elections straightforward, efficient, secure and,
above all, readily accessible to all electors given modern lifestyles".

The Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) has now taken over lead
responsibility for the electoral modernisation programme from the ODPM
after a recent government reshuffle.

No-one at the DCA was immediately available for comment.

--
In every election in American history both parties have their cliches.
The party that has the cliches that ring true wins. 
-- Newt Gingrich
 
Regards
brd

Bernard Robertson-Dunn
Sydney Australia
brd at iimetro.com.au