67.This Schedule amends provisions in the Representation of the People Act 1983 relating to electoral registration.
68.Paragraph 2 makes a consequential change to section 6 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (which deals with merchant seamen). It reflects the fact that, by virtue of section 1 of the Act, entitlement to registration will in future by determined by reference to the new section 4 of the Representation of the People Act 1983.
69.Paragraph 3 replaces the existing section 9 of the Representation of the People Act 1983. That section deals with the registration officer's duty to prepare electoral registers, as does the replacement section. The difference is that under the existing provision preparation and publication of the registers occurs on an annual basis whereas in future the register will need to be updated throughout the year as additions and deletions are made. The replacement section sets out the contents of the register (including the requirement to allot electoral numbers).
70.Paragraph 4 is concerned with the maintenance of electoral registers. It replaces the existing section 10 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 and creates a new section 10A. These are explained below.
71.Under new section 10(1) and (2) the registration officer is required to carry out an annual canvass by reference to residence on 15 October to establish who in his area is entitled to be or remain registered.
72.The canvass should not include mental hospitals or penal institutions or other places where those on remand may be held or those registered by means of declarations of local connection, service declarations or overseas electors' declarations (new section 10(3)).
73.On completion of the canvass, which can include house to house inquiries, the registration officer must make the necessary alterations to his register (new section 10(5) and (6)).
74.Residence here means residence for the purposes of section 4 of the Representation of the People Act 1983, as inserted by section 1 of this Act (new section 10(7)).
75.New sections 10A(1) and (2) provide for registration officers to determine applications for registration and to add to the register those who are not currently registered but who appear in the annual canvass form relating to the address, who are to be treated as having made an application for registration in respect of that address.
76.New section 10A(3) gives the registration officer power to determine objections to a person's registration.
77.New section 10A(4) extends the registration officer's power to determine applications and objections to those asking for omissions, insertions and alterations relating to dates and places of residence.
78.New section 10A(5) provides that a person who is registered as an elector is entitled to remain registered until the registration officer determines as part of his annual canvass that the person was not registered on the 15 October concerned; or if the registration officer is unable to satisfy himself that the person was registered either because the registration form was not returned or because it contained insufficient information; or if the registration officer is satisfied that the elector has ceased to be resident or has otherwise ceased to meet the conditions for registration.
79.New section 10A(6) provides that when a person is no longer entitled to be registered in respect of a particular address, the registration officer must, having satisfied the prescribed requirements, remove that person's name from the register.
80.New section 10A(7) allows regulations to be made to enable registration officers to keep names on the register for a prescribed period where the form used for the annual canvas has not been returned.
81.The effect of new section 10A(8) is that the provisions of new sections 10A(5) and (6) do not apply to those in mental institutions or remand prisoners or those registering by means of declarations of local connection or service or overseas electors' declarations.
82.New section 10A(9) contains definitions for the purposes of this section.
83.Paragraph 5 repeals sections 11 and 12(1), (2) and (5) of the Representation of the People Act. They are superseded by the provisions inserted by section 1 of this Act and paragraphs 4 and 6 of this Schedule.
84.Paragraph 6 is concerned with the publication and alteration of electoral registers. The existing section 13 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 requires registers to be published once a year reflecting the fact that the register is only produced once a year.
85.The new requirement, imposed by the replacement section 13, is for the registration officer to publish the revised versions of both of his registers (the parliamentary register and the local government register) by 1 December or such later date as is provided for in regulations (new section 13(1)).
86.In addition the registration officer may publish revised versions of his register at any point in the year (new section 13(3)).
87.A revised version of the register takes effect from the time when it is published (new section 13(5)).
88.New section 13A is concerned with the alteration of registers. Where a registration officer is satisfied, in accordance with prescribed requirements, that an entry should be added to the register(s), removed from the register(s) or amended, he must issue a notice setting out the change to the register(s). The notice must be issued on the first day of the next month or, if there are less than 14 days until the first day of the next month, on the first day of the following month. The change to the register is normally effective from the day on which the notice is published (new section 13A(1) and (2)).
89.New section 13A(3) provides that the registration officer does not have to publish a monthly alteration notice at the beginning of the month in which he is to publish a revised version of the register at the beginning of either of the two months before that in which he must publish the annual revised version of the register (so that in the normal way he will not have to publish such a notice at the beginning of October, November or December). Any alterations that are due to be made should be made in the revised version of the register.
90.New section 13A(4) provides that the registration officer is not required to issue a monthly alteration notice in cases where he is required to issue a notice of alteration under the provisions of new section 13B (see below).
91.New section 13B is concerned with alterations to the electoral register when elections are pending.
92.An alteration to the electoral register which takes effect after the closing date for nominations will normally not have effect at the election in question. The exception is if the alteration takes effect on or before the fifth day before polling day and is made either for the purpose of correcting a clerical error or to give effect to the ruling of a court made under section 56 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (new section 13B(1)).
93.New sections 13B(2) and (3) apply where before either the fifth or the sixth day before polling day the registration officer determines that, for the purpose of correcting a clerical error or to give effect to a ruling of a court, a name needs to be added to or deleted from the register and the alteration has not already been made and would not otherwise take effect by the fifth day before polling day.
94.In such circumstances the registration officer will issue a notice specifying the alteration to the register, which will take effect immediately.
95.Paragraphs 7-10are concerned with service declarations. Service declarations may be made by members of the armed forces, Crown servants and British Council employees overseas, and their spouses.
96.Paragraph 7 makes a consequential change to reflect the fact that by virtue of section 1 of the Act entitlement to registration will in future by determined by reference to the new section 4 of the Representation of the People Act 1983.
97.Paragraph 8 amends section 15 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 to provide that declarations made by members of the armed forces should normally last for 12 months (rather than indefinitely as at present) and to reflect the fact that there will no longer be a single annual qualifying date for registration.
98.Paragraph 9 makes consequential changes to section 16 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 to take account of the fact that there will no longer be a distinction between the service declarations made by members of the armed forces and their spouses and those made by others with a service qualification and to prevent registrations by means of a service declaration being made in respect of a future address.
99.Paragraph 10 largely replicates the existing section 17(1) of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (which deals with the effect of registration by means of a service declaration) except that it reflects the fact that there will no longer be a single annual qualifying date for registration.
100.The current section 18(8) of the Representation of the People Act 1983 provides that alterations in polling districts are not effective until the next register is published except in the circumstances provided for in regulations. Paragraph 11 enables registration officers to make alterations to the register to take account of boundary changes and for those changes to be effective from the date of publication of a notice by the returning officer saying he has made them.
101.Paragraphs 12 and 16 make consequential changes to reflect the fact that there will no longer be a single annual qualifying date for registration.
102.Paragraphs 13 and 14 make consequential amendments to take account of the fact that with the introduction of "rolling" electoral registration there is no requirement to produce electors lists (also referred to as draft registers). Paragraph 14 also contains amendments reflecting the new procedure for altering registers under sections 13A and 13B of the Act.
103.Paragraph 15 enables rules of court to be made in relation to appeals to county courts in Northern Ireland against decisions of registration officers.
104.Paragraph 17 amends section 62 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 by replacing references to a patient's declarations with references to declarations of local connection. Voluntary patients are currently required to make patient's declarations but that requirement is removed by section 4 of this Act.
105.Paragraph 18 makes consequential amendments to section 76 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (which provides limits on election expenditure). Election expenses are generally calculated, at least in part, on the number of voters on the electoral register and this paragraph provides that the register to be used for the purposes of such a calculation is the register as it has effect on the last day for publication of notice of the election.
106.Section 91 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 gives candidates an entitlement to send one piece of election literature free of postal charges to every elector. Paragraph 19 provides that the term "elector" means a person who is on the relevant register on the last day for publication of notice of the election and will be 18 or older on polling day.
107.Paragraph 20 inserts a new section into the Representation of the People Act 1983 which provides that a certificate issued by the registration officer stating that a person did or did not appear on one of his registers is to be taken as evidence of this fact.
108.Section 201 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 provides for the making of regulations under that Act and paragraph 21 supplements these powers.
109.Paragraph 22 provides a definition of "dwelling" (in place of the definition of "dwelling house").
110.Paragraph 23 amends the parliamentary elections rules relating to nomination papers. It defines the term "elector" as a person who is on the relevant register on the last day for publication of notice of the election and will be 18 or older on polling day, and makes consequential changes to take account of the fact that with the introduction of "rolling" electoral registration there is no draft register.
111.Paragraph 24 amends the regulation-making powers in Schedule 2 to the Representation of the People Act 1983.
112.Paragraph 24(3) allows regulations to be made which enable registration officers, having not obtained satisfactory information from them, to remove people from the electoral register. It also enables the registration officer to inspect and copy local authority records for the purpose of compiling his register without breaching restrictions on the disclosure of information.
113.Paragraph 24(4) expands the existing provision enabling regulations to be made to require registration officers to remind overseas electors to renew their declarations to cover all types of applications and declarations.
114.Paragraph 24(5) allows regulations to be made specifying the form for applications to be added to the electoral register other than at an annual canvass.
115.Paragraphs 24(6) and (7) make consequential changes to reflect the introduction of "rolling" electoral registration and the fact that draft registers will no longer be produced.
Schedule 1: Registration: Amendment of 1983 Act