Have you any idea how much a shift to weekend voting will cost. Its hard enough to staff polling stations and count centres now. It will cost twice as much to be the thousands of people needed at weekends, and it will not solve voter apathy. Only good quality, honest, accountable politicians will do that.

Robert, Sussex,

There's now a good feel factor towards UK politics, almost like a relief factor following Tony Blair.

Cherie Blair came across as power hungry and as she wore the trousers when the Blairs were living in Downing Street I can't imagine her allowing Tony to give away power to the people.

Well done Mr Brown!
It'll be interesting watching your career; please undo any other damage the Blairs may have done and thankyou for thinking of the UK before you're personal interests.

I may vote Labour yet...
... maybe

Richard Irwin, London, UK

I hope they do relax the days the union flag can be flown, it should be proudly flown in and outside to every public building! Bringing the voting age down may help, but really someone needs to engage with young people. Young people won't watch the evening news, won't buy or read a newspaper, so how do they find out about changing laws or for that matter anything good that may be coming their way? It worries my that Scottish MP's are allowed to vote on English only issues. Why can't English MP's vote in Scotland to let's say, impose prescription charging!

Ray, Newcastle, UK

He needs to scrap ID Cards before talking about democracy and freedom.

Michael Rigby, Blackburn, England

I do not think turnout in elections will rise much simply because the polls are open on different days. After all, turnout has not fallen because elections are held on Thursdays; in my view, they have fallen because we, the voters, have lost confidence in the good faith and good disposition of those who lead us.

When we have an honest, well-disposed and responsive political élite, I am sure that interest among ordinary voters will start to revive.

Is it not therefore time for the present government to step down and call an election?

Michael Bruce, Selby, Yorkshire

Why is it always the Labour Party move to lower the voting age,it will not bring more young people to vote as lowering to 18 has proved.
Why is the value of a vote derided by email voting text voting etc -the vote should be registered in person at a polling station (other than sickness or disability) Democracy should be seen by the choice of joining with others in a queue if necessary to vote
Keep Thursday as the poll day as it does not offend any of the religious especially Saturday afternoon shoppers and sportwatchers

Hugh McKay, Coleraine,

The best way to improve voting turn out is to give us something worth turning out to vote for. It doesn't matter what your mainstream candidates say in their campaign, they will be bound by the party line. Which means that you only have two real choices to vote for - since on a national basis minority parties are an irrelevancy to turn out - and in recent years there has not been enough difference between the two.

If you really want bigger turn out simply massively widen the ideological gap. Simple...

Mike Poulsen, Reading, Berkshire

Thats a coincidence. I was watching a documentary about heavy metal on one of the music channels last night and it followed the early years of Def Leppard. At one point it showed the band members wearing Union Jack shorts and t-shirts and I suddenly thought - what happened to the Union Jack? You never see it these days. We used to be such a proud nation but that doesn't seem to exist anymore - and looking back on it I cant even put my finger on exactly when we stopped being proud..

Its like when drink-driving became taboo. There was a time everyone used to do it and no-one gave it much consideration (like speeding), yet over the course of time it somehow became such a huge unthinkable thing to do. And quite rightly too, drink driving is dangerous, but when did being proud of your country become dangerous? Why do we all feel so paranoid about flying our national flag?

So come on Gordon, its a good start but so much more needs to be done. Make us feel proud to be British again.

Rod Munch, Northampton, UK

Politicians in recent years have failed to earn the public's confidence and votes for many reasons amongst which are:
1 Dishonesty - eg reasons for going to war in Iraq
2 Failure to keep their promises - no referendum on EU Treaty (in reality Constitution)
3 The impression that there first concern is personal - eg huge expenses and fiddling housing allowances
4 The removal of honest and trustworthy men to the margins - eg Labour's treatment of Frank Field
5 Proposing a Bill of Rights - just too continental we enjoy the dictum that everything is legal unless legislated against.

Moving voting to weekends is not the solution. Our "leaders" need to examine their consciences and put there own houses in order before passing the buck to a public that feels disenfranchised by charlatans.

John Broughton, Corwen, Denbighshire

So English MPs voting on English issues that do not affect Scotland is a bad thing, but Scottish MPs voting on English issues that do not affect Scotland is perfectly reasonable.

Of course Brown does not want to upset the Union. The massive inequity caused by Scottish Devolution, which English voters pay for is too much of a gravy train.

Peter, London, ENGLAND

Democracy is usually considered to be Government by the People for the People. The concept is that you vote for someone locally, who expresses the views of the local majority, by a simple majority, to go forward to represent those views in Parliament.

The UK has evolved a system that says you can vote for a representative put forward by a political party, whom will in turn support that party even though their views may be against the will of the majority that elected them.

Another illustration of UK democracy would be that Gordon Brown has brought in a regime that has students in England paying for the baulk of their education. Knowing that it will not affect any of his constituents, the only people that can vote him out. Political responsibility?

The problem is that the people that have the power will not change, modernise make fairer any system that got them where they are. No amount of tinkering around the periphery will make participation in Democracy more likely. Only the understanding that Parliament belongs to the people and not that the people belonging to Parliament, everything should be aimed to make it easier to have ‘The People’ represented in Parliament. Only then will participation increase.

Ian B, Reading, UK

Mr Brown's proposals are largely technical, with little relevance to the humble voter. However, it remains unacceptable that MP's representing Scottish constituencies can vote against the English receiving benefits which are enjoyed by their own constituents. Devolution happened long enough ago for this issue to have been cleared up by now.

Peter Jenkinson, Okehampton, England

A change of election day sounds like a good idea. I've never heard an explanation as to why Thursday is favoured. In fact it seems to me about the worst possible day of the week, especially for council elections. Most local papers publish on Thursday or Friday, too soon for the results to be in, so we have to wait nearly a week to read all the details and reactions, by which time most of the excitement is over.

Barry, Wallington, UK