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By Kate Hanaghan, 3 May 2002 15:00

NEWS Electronic voting trials carried out during yesterday's local elections have failed to turn round voter apathy. Turnout in wards where voting via SMS and public kiosks was an option was five per cent up on last year's. In areas where no voting experiments were conducted, turnout increased four per cent. Voting via the internet produced more disappointing results. Only one per cent more people voted in areas where this was an option than in the same elections last year - a markedly less pronounced rise than the national average. By contrast, the figures from the electoral commission show that 'old media' postal voting boosted turnout by an average of 28 per cent. Of the 174 local councils in the country, 30 took part in experiments to see how alternative means of voting would affect turnout figures. As well as options to complete ballots early and via post, the electorate in areas including Liverpool and Sheffield were invited to vote electronically. Constituents were sent passwords by post for secure voting via email, phone or text message. While voter participation in these areas only increased by relatively small amounts, those that did bother to take part in the democratic process were keen on using the technology options. In the Everton and Church wards in Liverpool, for example, more than 40 per cent of votes were cast by electronic means. In Sheffield, 4,000 voters followed the electronic route using either SMS or the internet. The trials in Liverpool and Sheffield were run with BT and election.com. The telco is claiming the "results are excellent and a confirmation that electronic voting is key to supporting democracy".