Commentary on Sections Assistance for voters etc. Section 36 Translations etc. of certain documents
229.This section inserts section 199B (translations etc. of certain documents) into the 1983 Act.
230.Subsection (1) of section 199B provides that subsections (2) and (3) apply to any document required or authorised to be given to voters or to be displayed in any place for the purposes of a parliamentary or local government election.
231.Subsection (2) provides that the person who is required or authorised to give or display the documents mentioned in subsection (1) must, as he thinks appropriate, make those documents available in Braille and translate them into languages other than English. In addition he must, as he thinks appropriate, make graphical representations of the information contained in the documents and provide information in an accessible, appropriate form to persons who might not otherwise be able to access that information.
232.Subsection (3) enables the person who is required or authorised to display specified documents to provide the information contained in those documents in an audible form.
233.Subsection (4) provides that the power in subsection (2) does not apply to the nomination paper or the ballot paper.
234.Subsections (5) and (6) permit the returning officer to exhibit an enlarged sample copy of the ballot paper during the poll. The words ‘VOTE FOR ONE CANDIDATE ONLY’ (or, alternatively and where necessary for local government elections “VOTE FOR NO MORE THAN [here insert the maximum number of candidates to be elected] CANDIDATES”) must appear both at the top and immediately below the list of candidates on the enlarged sample copy as well as such translations of those words printed below the list of candidates as considered appropriate by the returning officer. Subsections (7) and (8) provide that the returning officer must have a large, hand-held sample ballot paper available at the polling station for partially sighted voters – this is not intended for the purpose of voting on and as such should be clearly marked as a specimen.
235.Subsection (9) provides that in Northern Ireland, the question as to whether a person should provide documents in a language other than English, as set out under subsection (2)(b), is to be decided by the returning officer.