The local government minister has highlighted the extensive piloting of electronic voting in next month's elections.

Nick Raynsford also said that ministers hope to use e-voting in a future general election.

Ahead of a £17 million pilot of electronic voting at next month's local elections, Raynsford pledged that the new technology would make elections "easier and more convenient".

Next month will see 17 e-voting pilot schemes take place involving 1.4 million people. A further 42 local authorities are piloting all-postal elections and other innovations.

"This year's local elections will not only be the largest test of the government's e-voting plans, positioning the UK as one of the leaders in e-voting in Europe, but our other pilot schemes, such as all-postal ballots, demonstrate the range of voting options available to the modern voter as we move into the 21st century," he said.

"The government is committed to making these electoral pilot schemes a success and this is illustrated by the investment of over £18 million for this year's pilot schemes alone.

"These pilot schemes are about the future of voting. Not just making it easier for people to vote but making the process more efficient for the committed men and women running elections.

"The pilots are an important step towards our aim of holding an e-enabled general election sometime after 2006 and the government will be monitoring the impact of these pilots with great interest."

Roger Creedon, chief executive of the Electoral Commission, also gave his support to the use of new technology.

"The 2003 pilots promise to be extremely useful in helping us achieve the aim of making voting more accessible, without compromising security or public confidence." he said.