Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the roll out of Voter ID for a local election.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of voter identification, appropriate impact assessments, which include information on costs, will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.
Showing identification to prove who they are is something people of all walks of life already do everyday. It is a reasonable and proportionate approach to extend this practice to voting and give the public confidence that their vote is theirs, and theirs alone.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many local elector cards were issued as part of the Voter ID pilots in (a) 2019 and (b) 2018.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The evaluations of the 2018 and 2019 Voter Identification pilot, which include information on locally issued elector cards, can be found at:
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the requirement for photographic ID to vote will not disenfranchise blind and partially sighted people who are less likely to hold a passport or driving licence.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The list of approved photo ID will not be limited to UK passports or driving licences. A broad range of documents already in use will be accepted, including, for example, various concessionary travel passes, Proof of Age Standards Scheme (PASS) cards, and photocard parking permits issued as part of the Blue Badge scheme. In addition, expired photographic ID will be accepted as long as the photograph is of a good enough likeness to allow polling station staff to confirm the identity of the holder.
For any voter who does not have one of the required forms of photographic ID, a free, local Voter Card will be available from their local authority.
We will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other stakeholders, including the Equalities and Human Rights Commission and a wide range of charities and civil society organisations, to make sure that Voter ID is rolled out in a way that is inclusive for all eligible voters.
Everyone who is eligible to vote will have the opportunity to do so.
As legislation is brought forward to enable the national roll out of Voter ID, appropriate impact assessments will be provided for Parliament in the normal way.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many counting agents will be required as a minimum for the counts at the 6 May 2021 elections.
Answered by Chloe Smith
Arrangements will be put in place by statutorily independent Returning Officers and their teams to allow the effective scrutiny of the counts while ensuring each count is COVID-secure for everyone present. The pandemic means that the arrangements for these polls will be necessarily different from those normally in place.
The Electoral Commission, in consultation with public health bodies, has provided guidance for Returning Officers on the organisation and conduct of the polls, including the count, in the context of the pandemic. We are aware that discussions on arrangements have taken place at local level and that Returning Officers are working with candidates and political parties to set out what is practicable within relevant legislation and with due regard to the need to ensure that count processes can be, and can be seen to be effectively conducted.
I have the utmost confidence in the ability of the Returning Officers to run these polls in a way that meets the highest standards of both public safety and democratic integrity.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that adequate numbers of counting agents are permitted by Electoral Registration Officers to attend and monitor the counting process during the election counts of 6 May 2021.
Answered by Chloe Smith
Arrangements will be put in place by statutorily independent Returning Officers and their teams to allow the effective scrutiny of the counts while ensuring each count is COVID-secure for everyone present. The pandemic means that the arrangements for these polls will be necessarily different from those normally in place.
The Electoral Commission, in consultation with public health bodies, has provided guidance for Returning Officers on the organisation and conduct of the polls, including the count, in the context of the pandemic. We are aware that discussions on arrangements have taken place at local level and that Returning Officers are working with candidates and political parties to set out what is practicable within relevant legislation and with due regard to the need to ensure that count processes can be, and can be seen to be effectively conducted.
I have the utmost confidence in the ability of the Returning Officers to run these polls in a way that meets the highest standards of both public safety and democratic integrity.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 23 April 2021 to Question HL14191, on 10 Downing Street, whether essential works were undertaken on the Prime Ministerial residence in Downing Street prior to the current occupant moving in; and how much was spent on those works.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
I refer the hon. Member to Lord True, Minister of State at the Cabinet Office’s response of 23 April 2021, PQHL14191.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 23 March 2021 to Question 171645 on Electoral Register: Travellers, what meetings (a) the Minister for the Constitution and Devolution has had and (b) officials of his Department have had with members of the Gypsy, Traveller and Roma community on improving voter turnout at elections of members of the Gypsy, Traveller and Roma community.
Answered by Chloe Smith
Ministerial meetings are published regularly. Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have the statutory responsibility for maintaining complete and accurate electoral registers for their areas. They are required to consider the presence of any gypsy or travelling communities in their area and to decide on the best approach to take locally. The Electoral Commission runs campaigns to raise awareness of how people can register to vote, and how to cast their vote.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Government's plans to introduce voter identification, whether voters that are applying for absentee ballots will be required to provide a copy of their photo identification along with their application.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
This Government is determined to strengthen the integrity of our electoral system and give the public confidence that our elections are modern, fair and secure.
Electors will be required to show an approved form of photographic ID before casting their vote in a polling station across Great Britain at national UK-wide elections, and at local elections in England.
The Government does not have plans, as part of the national rollout of Voter ID, to require applicants to supply photo identification along with their application for a postal or proxy vote.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the Government plans to publish findings from his Department's pilot schemes of audio voting devices.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
As detailed in response to previous questions on the topic, the Government is conducting localised testing with the RNIB to inform policy development and to improve the voting process for blind and partially sighted people. These are not ‘pilot schemes’ under section 10 of the Representation of the People Act 2000.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 22 March 2021 to Question 169884 on Voting Methods: Visual Impairment, for what reasons the answer to that Question did not specify how many local authorities are due to take part in his Department's pilot schemes of the audio voting device.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Government has been considering the most appropriate approach to further evidence gathering in this area. We are keen to understand how an accessible audio device would in principle operate in a 'live' poll when used in conjunction with the tactile voting device and are therefore working with the RNIB and one local authority to test that during the forthcoming polls. The decision to test with one local authority has been informed by the need to progress this work with the need to respect public health regulations, the significant workload that a difficult combination of polls has created in some areas and to ensure any testing does not create additional risk, particularly to a group of potentially vulnerable people.
This work will allow us to build on previous evidence gathering we have undertaken with both people with sight loss and electoral administrators. We are grateful to the RNIB and local authority for their hard work and commitment, noting the operational challenges more generally with these polls.