TMR 109 : Dr. Simon Pardoe : Vote Or Vote NONE

For our second interview this week we welcome Dr. Simon Pardoe, director of "Vote Or Vote NONE" (VoteNone.org.uk), who joins us to discuss the hopes, aims and merits of that campaign as we approach the UK General (S)election on the 7th of May 2015.

"Faced with the overwhelming public anger at UK politics, and determination not to vote, I found myself suggesting people Vote NONE as the only potential form of participation. Surprisingly, it shifted those conversations from anger about UK politicians to a shared concern about how to revitalise UK democracy and improve UK politics. I realised that whereas not voting can be an end to thinking and engagement, the option to Vote NONE can re-engage people in thinking about politics and democracy. Suddenly there’s no reason to be silent, and every reason to think about what to do." (Simon Pardoe)

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Interview Notes

HQ (128kbps)

[party, politics, protest, voting, parliament, blank vote, abstention, strategic voting, election, selection, none of the above, NOTA, demonstration, Russell Brand, Naomi Klein, TTIP, TPP, TAFTA, corporations, lobbying, depositor unions, consumer power, advertising]