26 April 2002
In an interview with Public Finance, Charles Clarke said the cause of voter apathy was 'a lack of engagement in the political process'. He said the 30 council experiments, including voting via mobile phones or on the Internet, were only important if they increased accessibility. 'Generally I don't think the experiments are the answer,' he said. 'The main issue is voter engagement.'
Clarke, who has taken personal control of the Labour campaign, conceded that the local elections on May 2 were vital to the government. More than 5,000 seats are up for re-election, with most situated in traditional Labour heartlands such as the London boroughs and metropolitan authorities. But pundits are predicting that turnouts could dip below last year's 30% average.
He said the campaign was focused on boosting turnouts and encouraging usual non-voters, such as the young and ethnic minority people, to cast their vote. This could only be achieved, he said, through traditional pavement politics.
Clarke has apparently masterminded up to 150 ministerial visits around the country, including Foreign Secretary Jack Straw's appearance on a soapbox in Blackburn. 'We do need to work very hard to be more accessible to people. We have a long way to go, I would admit that.'
He added that Labour welcomed the aggressive campaigning of the opposition parties in the elections. 'I want all the political parties to put their case as strongly as they can, we all need to engage.'
PFapr2002
