Commentary on Sections Part 1 Individual Electoral Registration in Great Britain Section 5: Invitations to register
28.Section 5 inserts a new section into the 1983 Act which requires registration officers in Great Britain to give invitations to register to unregistered persons of whom they are aware (whether identified through the annual canvass or by any other means). This is supported by a power to make regulations about such invitations including how often they must be sent, the form and content of the invitations sent, what documents must be sent, and a provision to require invitations to be accompanied by other documents including application forms. The regulations may confer functions on the Electoral Commission. The new section also provides that registration officers may, after sending an invitation, subsequently require the person to make an application for registration by a specified date. It enables regulations to make provision about the requirement to make an application and specify steps that a registration officer must take before imposing a requirement. The new section provides that a registration officer may impose a civil penalty on a person who fails to comply with a requirement to make an application by a specified date.
29.Subsection (2) introduces Schedule 3, which inserts a new Schedule ZA1 into the 1983 Act, which makes further provision about such civil penalties.