Daniel Spillane, 38, from Seattle in America says he was fired two years ago because he intended to expose what he describes as major flaws in some of the company's voting software.

VoteHere software processed more than 4,000 votes in Swindon during the May 2002 election.

Mr Spillane says he was fired hours before he was due to meet officials from an independent e-voting watchdog - the Independent Test Authority - to raise concerns about the software.

The lawsuit, filed this week in Washington, seeks almost $500,000 in lost wages and damages.

A spokesperson for VoteHere says the action has ''no merit''.