Parliament under fire over £270,000 voting system

Published on Monday 11 July 2011 16:24

WORK has begun on installing a new touchscreen voting system in the Scottish Parliament's debating chamber at a cost of £270,000 - even though the current system works fine.

Parliament bosses say the existing voting consoles and microphones - which have been in use for less than seven years - have reached the end of their useful life and spare parts are no longer available.

The chamber will be shut off for most of the summer recess to allow the new system to be fitted, then training sessions will be held on how to use it.

But MSPs voiced scepticism about the need for so much money to be spent on replacing such a recently installed system at a time when finances are tight.

MSPs' desks in the chamber are currently equipped with microphones and a set of buttons, which they press to vote.

The new system will see the politicians voting by touchscreen. And the system will also be able to show MSPs the wording of motions and amendments being debated.

The hardware for the new system has been made by a Danish company, Danish Interpretation Systems. The installation and maintenance contract has gone to a Fife-based company, AV Department.

It will cost around 270,000 for the hardware, software, installation, training and internal resources, with a further 5000 a year for maintenance for the next ten years.

Independent Lothians MSP Margo MacDonald said there was no need to be spending so much money on a new system.

"I don't think the current system has reached the end of its life - and if it has, I hope we're asking for a lot of money back.

"I find it hard to believe they can't get spare parts. It's not a complicated system, so I don't think it would be difficult.

"The only thing they need to change, if it can be done, is overhead microphones so people can turn round and address other speakers or answer questions. Omni-directional microphones, as they have in the House of Commons, strung above your head, that would be a big improvement."

Lothians Labour MSP Neil Findlay also questioned the need for the new system.

He said: "As a new member of parliament the voting machinery seems perfectly adequate to me. At a time when public services are under threat and money is very tight I think we should make do with what we have got."

But a Scottish Parliament spokesman insisted the sound and voting system had reached the end of its functional life.

He said because it had been ordered before the parliament building was completed, the current equipment was more than nine years old, "which is old in technology terms".

He said: "To future-proof the system, the new equipment will be easier to update without having to replace the hardware, and we have tied up with a Fife-based company to provide a maintenance contract which will see us into the next decade."