Comments on: A question about telephone election canvassing

By: Steve

Steve — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:30:21 +0000

Hi Winchester Whisperer

The rules are very clear – in 2005 the Information Commissioner said that the term ‘Marketing’ includes the promotion of an organisation’s aims and ideals, and that it therefore classes political canvassing as marketing. This applies to the Telephone Preference Service and the use of automated calling equipment (RoboCalls).

It’s very disappointing to see the Labour Party making half a million RoboCalls in clear breach of these rules.

By: Winchester Whisperer

Winchester Whisperer — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 10:21:55 +0000

It is a grey area as canvassing isn’t strictly selling. However, if people opt for TPS, one assumes they don’t want to be called by people they don’t know and so one should respect their privacy, in my view, particularly if it could lose their vote.

By: Ellee

Ellee — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 14:49:26 +0000

D M Andy, thanks for the links, they are very helpful.
I agree that calls for political campaigning purposes should be separate from the more usual cold calls for marketing and sales.

By: CherryPie

CherryPie — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 16:40:16 +0000

I have signed up with the telephone preference society. It doesn’t however stop people picking up the local phone book and calling you.

Like Anne I would like to see the political parties coming to my door so I can speak to them face to face.

By: DM Andy

DM Andy — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 12:08:14 +0000

I actually think it’s not a very good idea to call householders who have registered with TPS due to the fact it annoys them. Part of that is a misconception about what TPS is, people have been led to believe it will stop cold-calling, when in fact it stops people cold-calling to sell you stuff (which includes ideas). That leads to complaints from people who think that you’ve overstepped the line when you haven’t. In the first six months of 2005, there were 262 complaints against the Labour Party for cold calling, 205 complaints against the Conservatives for the same thing Source: http://www.ico.gov.uk/upload/documents/foi_request_responses/response_foi_507.pdf

Ideally, the TPS should have two sections, one for people who are happy to be contacted for market research and information purposes and those that don’t want anyone they don’t know calling them ever. Then political parties would feel on safer ground contacting people on the first list.

The official guidance to political parties is here: http://www.ico.gov.uk/upload/documents/library/data_protection/detailed_specialist_guides/telephone_marketing_by_a_political_party.pdf

By: Ellee

Ellee — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 10:37:48 +0000

Hi DM Andy, this is a question I was asking clarification about because I was uncertain. I know of one Conservative parliamentary candidate who has told me that they are not calling householders who have registered with TPS. It still seems to be a grey area.

By: DM Andy

DM Andy — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 10:19:26 +0000

Ellee, as I pointed out on Twitter, the TPS service does not mean that you can’t be called by political parties.

The TPS bans marketing messages, so if you sign up to the TPS you shouldn’t receive any robo-calls from candidates or party leaders. But political parties can conduct market research (which is primarily what canvassing is) through unsoliticed polls.

What political parties can’t do is use market research as a lead in to marketing. I don’t know what the Tories use, but Labour phone canvassers are issued with a script that makes sure that every call follows the law. There were a number of complaints, stoked up by the Lib Dems mostly against Labour cold-calling in the 2005 election, they were all investigated and what Labour did was shown to be inside the law.

Suggesting that someone’s doing something illegal when they aren’t is rather bad form, don’t you think?

By: Jeremy Jacobs

Jeremy Jacobs — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:08:53 +0000

Anne wrote: "I have blocked cold callers too. As they are very irritating". Anne, this is because many calls are badly executed. I've recently referred to bad cold-calling several times recently on my site.

By: anne

anne — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:50:29 +0000

I have blocked cold callers too. As they are very irritating. I don’t want to be called by politcal parties, and in the run up to an election, how many times would my phone ring?

I want to see parties out and about, answering questions or knocking on doors, like they did a few years ago in Daventry. Only one party came round and he got my vote, and I got what I wanted.