E-counting contract awarded
The Scottish Government today awarded the contract to provide electronic counting services for the 2012 Scottish local government elections to Logica and their partners OPT2VOTE.
The award of this contract is an important milestone in the preparations for the local government elections in 2012. Testing will take place over the next 20 months to ensure the new e-counting system is fully operational in time for the elections in May 2012.
Minister for Enterprise, Energy and Tourism, Jim Mather said:
“Since the problems encountered in the 2007 elections, this Government has taken a series of measures and introduced reforms to ensure there is no repeat, including introducing legislation last year to separate local government elections from elections to the Scottish Parliament.
“The introduction of the new e-counting system is a major step in that process. Come the election, it will offer greater transparency through better displays of information as the count progresses. The system will have been subjected to rigorous testing to protect against the failures of the past.
“We have worked closely with our partners in local government to ensure that an effective and transparent e-counting system is in place that meets all expectations.”
Tom Aitchison, Convenor of the Interim Electoral Management Board for Scotland, said:
"The award of this contract is a significant stage in the preparations for the local government elections in 2012. Over the last 12 months, Returning Officers have worked closely with the Scottish Government to develop an e-counting system specification that learns the lessons from our experience in 2007 and will ensure the delivery of an accurate and transparent count.
“The next 20 months will be of vital importance as we engage in a robust testing regime of the e-counting system in advance of the elections in 2012 to provide confidence for the voter, parties, candidates and all those with an interest in the election."
Phil Gooch, Director, Public Sector at Logica added:
“Scotland is leading the way in eCounting and we are proud to have been chosen to help deliver this cutting edge technology for the 2012 local government elections. We have a truly dedicated team of experts with extensive experience in working with the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament. This gives us a unique knowledge and understanding to help us deliver this innovative system. We are confident we can deliver for Scotland.”