"Tim Streater" wrote in message
.. .
In article , Jeff Layman
wrote:

On 12/05/18 20:37, Rod Speed wrote:

And since I stopped working for the govt I have avoided being on
the electoral role so I dont have to vote given voting is compulsory
here so maybe thats why I havent been called since. Tho its more
likely they dont track who stops working for the govt or something.

I thought that it was compulsory to be on the electoral role in Oz. Over
here, we have to complete a form (once a year IIRC) asking who at the
address the form has been sent to is eligible to vote, or is about to
become eligible to vote (by their age). Failure to complete and return the
form (to the local council) is an offence.

I can't say that I've ever understood the reason behind the Oz law for
compulsory voting. Do they think it gives some legitimacy to the voting
process? Mind you, $20 is a small price to pay for avoiding to vote for
the bunch of crooks you have over there. Over here, it would have to be at
least twice as much...

The cry over here to make it compulsory is just a smoke screen. With
compulsory voting, you can hide the turnout figure that you might
otherwise get. Such as the drop in turnout for Westminster polls which
over the years, by not being hidden, have highlighted the decline in
apparent importance of the HoC under the onslaught of EU directives and
regulations.

IMO its more because they dont see much difference
between the two main partys that can form govt.

Going to be interesting to see if that fool Corbyn makes any difference to
that.