SWINDON's community is to be the first in Britain to try armchair voting via cable television on May 1.

Electors with cable will have the chance to vote through their TV set at the touch of a button rather than having to make their way to a polling station.

The council has been granted permission by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister to pioneer the technique, which will be rolled out nationwide by 2006 if the experiment works.

On May 1, Swindon, like other communities across the country will elect new councillors - 20 of Swindon's 59 seats are to be contested.

Alan Winchcombe, Swindon's deputy returning officer for elections, said the fact that Swindon was widely served by cable television another area in which it was a pioneer seemed to have counted in its favour. Mr Winchcombe said the over all aim, like that of e-voting, which Swindon and a small number of other local authorities helped to pioneer at last year's council elections, was to encourage more people to vote.

Turnouts in local elections are notoriously low - in some wards well below half of those eligible - and the Government has pledged to change this.

Armchair voting will be open to the 5,200 Swindon households which have itl's digital cable service.