Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of EU nationals living in the UK registered to vote in European Parliament elections in (a) 2014 and (b) 2019.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Cabinet Office does not hold information on the numbers of eligible electors nor information on the number of European nationals resident in the UK who register to vote in European Parliamentary elections.
Estimates of the number of eligible people on the registers for electoral events are published by the Electoral Commission following each poll, but do not include a breakdown of the numbers of EU citizens eligible to vote. The report on the 2014 European Parliamentary elections was produced by the Electoral Commission in July 2014 and is available online at: www.electoralcommission.org.uk.
Each Electoral Registration Officer maintains a register for their own local area. Some headline registration statistics by area are collated and published annually by the Office for National Statistics, however, this does not include a breakdown of the numbers of EU citizens registered to vote.
The latest bulletin is available at: www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/elections/electoralregistration.
Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of preparations for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by David Lidington
HM Treasury has allocated over £4.2 billion of additional funding to departments and the Devolved Administrations for EU exit preparations so far.
This funding is to cover all exit scenarios, and is in addition to departmental efforts to reprioritise from business as usual toward preparations for the UK’s departure from the EU.
Work on no-deal exit preparations cannot be readily separated from other EU exit work. The Department is preparing for all eventualities and the resources available to support preparations are kept under constant review.
This expenditure breaks down as:
Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that local authorities are sending out postal ballots for the elections to the European Parliament to eligible UK voters in EU countries in sufficient time for (a) voters to return the postal ballots and (b) for those ballots to be counted.
Answered by Kevin Foster
It remains the Government’s intention to leave the EU with a deal and not participate in European Parliamentary elections.
In preparation for the delivery of elections, Returning Officers, who are statutorily independent, will work to deliver the polls, including through following guidance issued by the Electoral Commission.
The Electoral Commission’s guidance advises Returning Officers to prioritise postal ballot packs that are to be sent overseas in order to allow as much time as possible for the ballot pack to reach the elector and to be completed and returned. The Government has agreed to fund International Business Response Licences for the return of postal votes from overseas and has met with Royal Mail and British Forces Post Office to ensure there is effective planning in place for the dispatch and return of postal votes from overseas including those for service voters based overseas.
Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what analysis did the Chancellor of the Exchequer used for the statement that it is unlikely, at a technical level, whether there would be enough time to legislate for a confirmatory referendum on the EU Withdrawal Agreement before the UK leaves the EU reported in the Guardian on 12 April 2019.
Answered by David Lidington
The Government has no plans to hold another referendum on EU membership. The Government remains committed to delivering on the result of the 2016 EU referendum by leaving the EU.
An Act of Parliament is required before any UK-wide referendum can be held, the terms of which are for Parliament to debate and agree, including provisions for setting the date, franchise and the question as well as incorporating adequate time to prepare for the poll and a minimum campaigning period.