Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his department has made an assessment of levels of prevalence of voting fraud in (a) postal voting, and (b) proxy voting.

Data on allegations and outcomes of electoral fraud is collected by police forces across the UK and provided to the Electoral Commission. The Electoral Commission publishes this information annually on its website. The Government continues to work closely with the Electoral Commission, the police and other partners to safeguard the integrity of elections and maintain public confidence in the democratic process.

Postal voting is now a major part of our elections, with over a quarter of votes at the 2024 General Election cast by post. As part of the Electoral Commission’s review of that election which can be found here, 89% of postal voters stated they were satisfied with the process of voting.

Proxy voting also remains an important element of our elections, particularly providing access for electors based overseas or in the military, and for disabled electors or those with medical issues. Appropriate safeguards such as identity checks remain in place for all absent voting applications.