Labour MSP John Park: ‘Voting by text will help stop low turnout’

A SENIOR Labour MSP is set to attempt to change the law to ensure that all local council elections are held at weekends and include the chance to vote by phone and text.

Labour MSP John Park said that after the low turnout at this month’s council elections, a “radical” new approach was needed to increase the numbers of votes cast.

Mr Park will put down a motion at the Scottish Parliament in the next few days calling for all council elections to be weekend polls, with phone and text voting options alongside the existing postal voting system and traditional polling booths.

The Labour MSP, who is a former trade union official at the Rosyth dockyard, said he wanted to get cross-party support for the move, which he hopes to then turn into an official parliamentary bill. He said: “The turnout in the local government elections was so low that we now need to consider alternative methods to enable the electorate to vote in a number of different ways.

“We need to recognise that times have changed and if we are going to increase voter turnout then we need to do something radical.

“We should do quite innovative things like giving people the chance to vote by phone and hold elections at weekends.

“There would have to be safeguards with the phone and text voting, but it would be a good way of improving voter turnout.

“Having weekend elections would make it easier for people who lead busy lives to vote and if it was over two days that could also help increase the turnout.

“It’s all got to be part of a move to regain voter trust and of trying to find new ways to engage with the electorate.

“I’ll be putting a motion down at the Scottish Parliament in the next few days and if there is enough cross-party support I’ll look to take it forward as a parliamentary bill.”