Nick Raynsford MP

Nick Raynsford MP (Labour) for Greenwich & Woolwich. Has a degree in history from Cambridge and a Diploma in Art and Design from Chelsea School of Art. He was first elected to Parliament in 1986

Don't Spy On Us

Nick Raynsford's researcher sent this reply to a constituent's email as part of the Don't Spy On Us campaign.


Thank you for your recent email to Nick Raynsford MP regarding your concerns about the expansion of surveillance operations conducted by the intelligence services.

Nick has been contacted by a number of constituents who, whilst generally recognizing the need for surveillance and intelligence gathering, are concerned at the apparent shift in balance in favour of mass surveillance at the expense of individuals’ right to privacy. Nick raised these concerns directly with the Home Office, and I attach for you the Minister's response.

Best wishes,

Jo

Jo Simpson Parliamentary Researcher Office of the Rt Hon. Nick Raynsford MP Labour MP for Greenwich & Woolwich House of Commons, London. SW1A 0AA t: 0207 219 5895 f: 0207 219 2619 w: www.nickraynsford.org.uk


Digital Economy Bill

Contacted repeatedly by KatieSutton; consistently failed to answer questions over how he felt/intended to vote. Explicitly said in a letter dated March 17th 2010 that he hadn't read the Bill. Refused meetings and went on to vote in favour.

Electronic Voting

In response to a question from Colin Challen MP on the potential for fraud in electronic voting methods 16 July 2003

I agree also that it is vital to have safeguards against the risk of fraud, and I can assure my hon. Friend that the electronic voting systems used in the pilots all include measures to provide the audit trail required to verify that any ballot paper has not been altered or lost. We are absolutely clear about that. Looking at his early-day motion, I have to say that we are not convinced of the merits of a paper audit trail, which could undermine the security and secrecy of the ballot and prove unnecessarily bureaucratic. However, we are committed to proper audit and control systems, and we will be looking carefully at the Electoral Commission's recommendations.

ZDNet 2002 Schemes that allow voting via the Internet, by mobile phone, digital TV, at a touch-screen kiosk or by post will all be welcomed, local government minister Nick Raynsford has indicated.

"This invitation follows on from the success of last May's pilots, when people in many parts of the country had their first real experience of voting electronically and by post," said Raynsford in a statement. "Such was the scale of the programme that the UK is quite rightly regarded as being among the pioneers of electoral modernisation."

BBC Text message votes 'trivialises' elections 23 May, 2002 Nick Raynsford said

"Any changes to the voting system must be properly researched to ensure that they are of real benefit to the public"
"Whatever else we do, we must maintain confidence in the whole polling process and we must maintain the integrity of the ballot.

News

2004-09-15 - Kable - Retreat from e-voting
Summary: The UK's independent elections body has revealed that there are unlikely to be any e-voting pilots in local elections next year. According to the minister responsible for local e-voting, Nick Raynsford, over the next few months the government is to consider a "foundation model" of polling which could include multi-channel elections. But there is little chance that a scheme including e-voting will be ready by the next council polls in May 2005.
2003-12-08 - BBC - UK 'not ready' for e-voting
Summary: Hi-tech voting methods using e-mail and text messaging should not be used in next year's European and local polls, according to a new report. ... Lord Falconer, the Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and Nick Raynsford, the Local Government Minister, will have the final decision on the trials.
2003-12-08 - The Guardian - Electoral Commission rules out e-voting
Summary: High-tech methods of voting via email and text message should not be used in next year's elections to local councils and the European parliament, a report warned today. ... The Commission's recommendations have been submitted to the lord chancellor, Lord Falconer, and the local government minister, Nick Raynsford, for a decision.
2003-05-03 - BBC - Pilot projects boost ballots
Summary: Electronic voting and all-postal ballots have been hailed as a "resounding success" at the local elections. Local Government Minister Nick Raynsford said he was "encouraged and pleased" that so many voters had used new technology to cast their ballots.
2003-05-02 - BBC - Turnout 'disappointing' says Raynsford
Summary: Turnout for the local elections was "disappointing" but the biggest ever test of new voting methods produced "encouraging" results, Local Government Minister Nick Raynsford has insisted.
2003-04-30 - The Guardian - Cross culture
Author: Simon Parker
Summary: Could e-voting really help to fix the problem? The government certainly thinks so. A statement released earlier this month by the local government minister, Nick Raynsford, said: "The electoral pilots aim to improve turnout, in particular among key groups of people who might otherwise be excluded, such as people who are working away from the area, younger voters, the elderly and people with mobility problems." Critics argue that this is a sticking-plaster approach that fails to address the real causes of public disillusionment, but ministers are still pressing ahead with a programme of e-voting pilots that will cost £18.5m this year alone. The money will pay for 17 councils to run electronic elections using various combinations of text message, digital television, the internet and telephones. More than 30 areas will be running all-postal elections.
2003-01-24 - BBC - E-voting trials for East Anglia
Summary: Residents in several areas across eastern England will have the chance to vote electronically in the council elections in May. Local Government Minister Nick Raynsford has announced that 18 places in England have been picked to run further trial schemes this year.
2002-10-28 - BBC - Voting plans provoke opposition fire
Summary: Proposals to hold forthcoming elections for London mayor, the European Parliament and local authorities on the same day would "restrict debate" and prevent proper scrutiny, say angry Tories. Local Government Minister Nick Raynsford, who unveiled the plans on Monday, claimed the move was to prevent "voter fatigue".
2002-10-07 - ZDNet - Government to push e-voting
Author: Graeme Wearden
Summary: The UK government is calling on councils to conduct electronic voting trials in the next local elections, which will take place in May 2003. Schemes that allow voting via the Internet, by mobile phone, digital TV, at a touch-screen kiosk or by post will all be welcomed, local government minister Nick Raynsford has indicated.
2002-05-23 - The Guardian - Report urges lessons in e-voting
Summary: There is public support for the idea of internet and phone voting, but the government must help to educate those electors who are less confident with new technology if an electronic general election is to go ahead, a report backed by ministers claimed today. ... Mr Raynsford said: "The government is currently looking at ways to modernise the electoral process - making it more relevant to modern life. We have in place a structured programme of research, pilots and thorough evaluation to explore new ways of voting, including electronic voting. "Any changes to the voting system must be properly researched to ensure that they are of real benefit to the public, as well as incorporating effective safeguards against abuse." But the report also raised concerns over secrecy and security, with possible threats from viruses, power supply disruption, hacking and limits to system capacity.
2002-05-23 - BBC - Text message votes 'trivialises' elections
Summary: Local Government Minister Nick Raynsford said the sole purpose of the research was to make it easier for people to vote. "This was an important stage in the government programme to test alternative ways of voting that may make it easier for people to exercise their democratic rights," he said. "Any changes to the voting system must be properly researched to ensure that they are of real benefit to the public, as well as incorporating effective safeguards against abuse. "Whatever else we do, we must maintain confidence in the whole polling process and we must maintain the integrity of the ballot. "We are proceeding in a very measured way with a series of pilots, all of which will be evaluated by the independent Electoral Commission. "I believe the pilots were a success. The postal voting pilots clearly did have a positive impact on the level of turn out."
2002-05-24 - vnunet - E-voting finds few friends
Author: Nick Farrell
Summary: Government research into electronic voting has revealed mixed opinions among the general public.Local government minister Nick Raynsford insisted that the research was an important step in testing alternative ways of voting that may make the process easier. "Any changes to the voting system must be properly researched to ensure that they are of real benefit to the public, as well as incorporating effective safeguards against abuse," he said. Raynsford claimed that the government was proceeding in a measured way with a series of pilots, all of which will be evaluated by the independent Electoral Commission. "I believe the pilots were a success. The postal voting pilots clearly did have a positive impact on the level of turnout," he said. The minister explained that e-voting was considered easy to use, and that more than 10 per cent of those who voted in Swindon did so over the internet, slightly more than those who voted by post.
2002-05-01 - The Times - Electronic voting/Unpoetic domains
Author: David Rowan
Summary: Nick Raynsford, the Minister for Local Government, is promising "an e-enabled general election some time after 2006". ... Steady on, chaps. Yes, the Internet has promised new possibilities for voter involvement since it was first used in Arizona's Democratic primaries in March 2000, but no one, least of all the Government, has yet worked out how to make the process secure and free from abuse. ... The Electoral Reform Society, for one, worries that the Government is pushing online voting long before it has been shown to work. "We're very dubious about people saying that the next general election should be online," says Alex Folkes at the ERS, which has called - without success - for "a couple of hackers"
2002-02-05 - BBC - Text message voting to be trialled
Summary: "We are particularly keen to engage younger voters and feel these" Nick Raynsford Local Government Minister. The aim is to boost the proportion of people who bothered to vote in elections, Local Government Minister Nick Raynsford said.
2002-02-05 - BBC - Online voting fraud warning
Summary: Online voting schemes should be tested much more thoroughly before being rolled out for UK-wide elections, says a new report from an influential think tank. ... Elections minister Nick Raynsford last month named the 41 local authorities that had applied - with more than half of the bids including some kind of electronic voting or counting.

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