THE government yielded to pressure yesterday and announced a review of the ban on electronic voting in industrial action ballots, in a belated decision welcomed by unions.

Announcing the independent review, long called for by the unions, Sir Ken Knight, a former chief fire and rescue adviser for England who will lead the review, said: “I am pleased to play my part in considering how best to ensure that, at the time of industrial tension, individual trade union members have their voice heard in making key decisions about the future of the industry they work in.”

The Trade Union Act has been lambasted by campaigners, who argue that it is effectively a gagging order that ties unions’ hands when it comes to political campaigning and further reduces the rights of union members which have already suffered incremental attacks by successive governments.