In comments picked up by the Telegraph, the Independent, local papers (including Wales Online, Manchester Evening News) the Campaign for Compulsory Voting’s planned amendment to the Representation of the People Bill was discussed by Neil Kinnock.
Former leader of the Labour Party, Neil Kinnock, will be supporting legislation calling for compulsory voting.
Lord Kinnock will be joined by former Home Secretary, Lord (David) Blunkett, former leader of the House of Lords, Baroness (Jan) Royall, and former Minister and MSP, Lord (George) Foulkes.
The group of senior Labour peers are urging the Government to consider Australian-style democracy where voting is compulsory for every eligible citizen.
Lord Kinnock said: “I lived for 10 years in Belgium and saw compulsory voting in practice. The high turnouts and extent of engagement in the democratic process strongly assists democracy in a country with complex ethnic and political arrangements.
“The experience there and in Australia re-enforced my long-held conviction that our democracy and citizenship in the UK would benefit greatly from a comparable system of legal obligation for everyone with the vote.
“When turnouts have fallen for various negative reasons, election results are consequently distorted, accountability can be diminished and disengagement from community obligations becomes habitual. Compulsion to use, or even to attend and abstain, is now increasingly justified and necessary.
“The civic responsibility must arise from the civil right. That is adult. That is justice.
“Improved and extended citizenship education through schools, classes and media would assist in widening and deepening commitment to understanding and using democracy .
“Compulsory voting would propel those necessary advances as well as strengthening the quality and attractiveness of representation of fellow citizens.”
Baroness Royall confirmed in the Lords she is set to table the compulsory voting amendment to the Representation of the People Bill.
Lord Foulkes of Cumnock, who will sign the House of Lords amendment, said: “Small tweaks won’t cut it when the future of our democracy is on the line. And that’s exactly how important voter participation is in our Parliamentary democracy. Without it, we are just passing laws in the interests of a narrow and unequal section of society. That has to change.
“Andy Burnham has a golden opportunity with the Representation of the People Bill to grasp the nettle, fix our dismal turnout, and follow Australia’s lead in building a system the public actually trusts. We urge him to truly reflect on the benefits compulsory voting could bring to our country and to our democracy.”
The amendment was previously introduced by Antonia Bance MP in the House of Commons (NC89) alongside another amendment also calling for compulsory voting introduced by Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP (NC57).
Together, both amendments were supported by almost 30 MPs and were considered by the Commons on September 2, 2026.
The Parliamentary efforts come as 40 political scientists from over 25 universities across almost 10 countries have called for Andy Burnham to consider compulsory voting as part of wider electoral reforms.
In a letter that will be sent to Number 10, academics from Australia, the US, South America, the UK, and across Europe urged the Prime Minister to consider compulsory voting.
The letter states: “As you know, turnout at elections remains far too low. The last UK general election had the second lowest turnout for a general election since the introduction of universal suffrage. The recent by-election for the Manchester Mayoralty had turnout of just 25 per cent.
“Moreover, inequalities in turnout mean those who do vote do not reflect the wider population, but are richer, older, whiter, and more economically secure than the UK public at large. This has warped British politics, and risks a crisis of democratic legitimacy.
“Yet there is a way to fix this. As academics from across the world, we would urge the Government to take seriously the proposals for Australian-style compulsory voting in the UK.
“In countries (like Australia) where compulsory voting is used, turnout in elections is higher and more equal, governments are more responsive to the needs of all people in all places, the public is more satisfied with democracy, and trust in institutions is higher.
“We believe the Representation of the People Bill represents a generational opportunity to strengthen British democracy by introducing compulsory voting to the UK.”
The full list of signatories of the open letter, the first of its kind among global academics who support compulsory voting, will be available on the Campaign for Compulsory Voting website.
Previously, it has been reported that compulsory voting was “on the table” as part of expected electoral reform efforts. Prior to becoming Prime Minister, Andy Burnham had said he wouldn’t “rule out” compulsory voting due to low turnout.
Various think tanks, including the Constitution Society, ThinkLabour, the IPPR, and Demos, have all expressed support for compulsory voting this year.
This coming week the Fairness Foundation think tank is expected to publish a paper calling for compulsory voting to fix economic inequalities related to low electoral turnout rates.
The former Prime Minister of Australia, Malcolm Turnbull, has also written this summer in favour of compulsory voting for the UK.
“Surely a key objective of a democracy is to maximise the participation of all the people, regardless of their wealth, education or enthusiasm for reading political columns in The Times or anywhere else, and it would seem self-evident that a system where 90% of the people vote is better, more legitimate than one where 60% vote,” he said.
“In these troubled times, it is important that electoral systems are designed to bring people together, to include everyone and above all resolve our political contest at the centre.
Charles White, from the Campaign for Compulsory Voting, said: “When public apathy threatens the health of our democracy, waiting for turnout to fix itself is no longer an option.
“Today, leading thinkers and giants of the Labour movement are uniting behind a simple truth: compulsory voting is a common-sense reform we need. It is simple, popular, and the only guaranteed way to make participation a universal civic duty.”
The Representation of the People Bill is expected to be next debated in the Lords at Committee Stage on a date to be announced.
Notes to Editors
- Contact: charles.white@compulsoryvoting.org.uk
- The Campaign for Compulsory Voting is a cross-party campaign to promote the introduction of compulsory voting for elections in the UK.
- Turnout at the 2024 general election was 59.7%, which was the lowest at a general election since 2001.
- Compulsory voting is used at the national level in 22 democracies, including advanced democracies comparable to the UK like Australia and Belgium.
