It has been interesting to read the reactions to my proposal of mandatory voting. My fellow UKIP member John Kelly makes a good point about the Swiss model. Of course, Jim Coleborne, those who do not wish to vote should not have to do so. They should just

It has been interesting to read the reactions to my proposal of mandatory voting. My fellow UKIP member John Kelly makes a good point about the Swiss model.Of course, Jim Coleborne, those who do not wish to vote should not have to do so. They should just make their point on the ballot paper. As is so often suggested, "None of the above" should do nicely, as would "I abstain", and might even concentrate the minds of those who wish to be elected. As for the call to an electoral officer, that is the system in Australia. The officer crosses the caller off the list with an annotation. In my view that is a tad dodgy, it could be anyone calling, but no votes are involved, so I suppose there is no electoral fraud.The reason I am so interested in the fact that Australians like the system is that, as a nation, they are very keen on preserving their integrity, their rights, their freedoms. Just as we once were. They like the system, so it would do for me. Ann Prior,75 Egremont Road, Exmouth.