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Shocked MPs told electoral plan could remove 10m voters 
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011 ... r-shake-up

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As many as 10 million voters, predominantly poor, young or black, and more liable to vote Labour, could fall off the electoral register under government plans, the Electoral Commission, electoral administrators and psephologists warned .

The changes will pave the way for a further review of constituency boundaries that will reduce the number of safe Labour seats before the 2020 election.

MPs on the political and constitutional reform select committee only realised the implications of the plans following three evidence sessions with election experts over the past week to examine the white paper which proposes to introduce individual electoral registration rather than household registration before the 2015 election.

The committee chairman, Labour MP Graham Allen, said they were "genuinely shocked". Even Tory members such as Eleanor Laing expressed surprise.

The policy has been described by Jenny Russell, the chair of the electoral commission, as the biggest change to voting since the introduction of the universal franchise.

Ministers have unexpectedly proposed that it should no longer be compulsory to co-operate with electoral registration officers (EROs) when they try to compile an accurate register, in effect downgrading the civic duty to engage with politics.

You may never get to change government ever again with all the proposed changes. All of which will make it more likely that the Conservatives will end up with majorities permanently.

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Thu Sep 15, 2011 11:21 pm
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Any chance we can get some Libyans over to liberate us?


Fri Sep 16, 2011 6:45 am
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Given the level of turnout in the last election, will it really make any difference? Until the people of this country realize that voting matters then nothing will change. However, with the current choice of political parties, maybe it's better if nobody voted at all to let them know how p***** off we are with the whole lot of them.

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Fri Sep 16, 2011 7:11 am
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So, the last two times the Tories have been in power, the boundaries have been (or will have been) redrawn; to the detriment of their opposition.

I know the electoral boundaries body (can't remember their name) is supposedly non-partisan, but my tinfoil hat is twitching. :lol:

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Fri Sep 16, 2011 7:58 am
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jonbwfc wrote:
Any chance we can get some Libyans over to liberate us?

Eventually these changes make a "British Spring" a higher possibility, it is just a matter of time, it could be years.

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Fri Sep 16, 2011 9:23 am
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Oh please. We had a referendum that would have slightly decreased the number of safe seats all round - and nobody gave a fcuk. The current boundaries are skewed to Labour's advantage (they can win an electoral majority with a lower share of the national vote than the Tories can).

There is a mild risk that come the 2020 election, maybe a few dozen people who would have been nagged into voting will now have an excuse for their apathy. I don't see how democracy benefits from unwilling voters being dragged to the polls by their mums and told who to vote for on the way.

There is a fetish abroad that claims democracy only counts if everyone gets involved. This is bull poop. Democracy requires that the electorate cares about their votes and considers choosing to be some kind of duty. It is better served if those who cannot or will not put in effort are allowed to opt out (their democratic choice is to let others choose - respect it).

And if they are too fat and lazy to vote, how are they supposed to suddenly have the dynamism to revolt? If they have no idea which party is in government right now (talk to some of them and you will find this is very common) nor what laws are being enacted, what the fcuk are thy going to do after their revolution? Are these people capable of seizing the reins of power? That's the dumbest prediction I've ever seen.


Fri Sep 16, 2011 10:07 am
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Until there is full PR then many will find that their votes are a waste of time. I have no problems with the changes if PR is introduced at the same time.

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Fri Sep 16, 2011 2:31 pm
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Surely this is just redressing the balance to take away labour's unfair advantage?

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Fri Sep 16, 2011 3:55 pm
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tombolt wrote:
Surely this is just redressing the balance to take away labour's unfair advantage?

fat lot of good it did them, frankly.


Fri Sep 16, 2011 3:59 pm
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If the Tories wanted to fix elections, they'd just give Scotland independance. The loss of Labour seats in Westminster would work in their favour.

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Sat Sep 17, 2011 9:49 am
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l3v1ck wrote:
If the Tories wanted to fix elections, they'd just give Scotland independance. The loss of Labour seats in Westminster would work in their favour.

Add Wales to that strategy.

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Sat Sep 17, 2011 3:08 pm
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Qite frankly I dont think it will make one iota of difference between household and single person registration

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Sat Sep 17, 2011 4:57 pm
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hifidelity2 wrote:
Qite frankly I dont think it will make one iota of difference between household and single person registration

Exactly right.

If having to register individually is a problem, then you weren't exactly likely to vote in the first place

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Sat Sep 17, 2011 5:00 pm
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rustybucket wrote:
hifidelity2 wrote:
Qite frankly I dont think it will make one iota of difference between household and single person registration

Exactly right.

If having to register individually is a problem, then you weren't exactly likely to vote in the first place

Yes but this policy is about not saving money but reducing voting rolls.

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Sat Sep 17, 2011 6:44 pm
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So what? If they were being stripped of their right to vote that would be a travesty, but if they are merely being asked to add themselves to the register, your moral indignation is nonsense. And that 10m statistic presented is naked hyperbole by the way.

Learn to live with the fact that democracy requires informed consumers. If people aren't interested, they are quite entitled to not participate.

I'm still incidentally interested to know how this leads to revolution?


Sun Sep 18, 2011 11:05 am
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