House of Commons embraces electronic voting via Surface Pro to improve speed and transparency

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Starting today, every vote that takes place in the House of Commons will be recorded on tablets -- specifically Microsoft Surface Pros. This is an expansion of the program used by UK MPs voting in divisions under the "English votes for English laws" procedure and means that the electronic system will be used in all situations.

It does not mean that each politician is equipped with his or her own tablet, but votes will be recorded by an appointed clerk. As well as improving accuracy internally, electronic voting means that data about votes can be made publicly available more quickly in the name of transparency.

The House of Commons clerks will use Surface Pros running custom software to record the names of voters, replacing the old-fashioned pen and paper system that has been in use. The full switch-over to an electronic system has been a long-time coming, with the idea first being investigated back in October 2014. It was a full year before tablet recording started, and a further six months before today's full roll out.

Clerk of the House of Commons David Natzler said:

We are harnessing modern digital technology to make our work more effective, more efficient and more accessible, while respecting parliamentary conventions and traditions. Using tablet devices to record divisions will enable us in due course to publish the results much faster, meeting demand from the public who naturally want to know how Members have voted.

Photo credit: ribeiroantonio / Shutterstock

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