Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government since the introduction of individual electoral registration how many people have attempted to register to vote but failed to do so because they were unable to provide their National Insurance number; and how many of those were online applicants.

Since the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration (IER) in England and Wales on 10 June and 19 September in Scotland, only 1% of all applications submitted to register to vote via the IER digital service have not been able to provide their personal identifiers (National Insurance Number or Date of Birth).

The registration process also allows for registrations to be made where it is not possible for an applicant to supply their National Insurance Number. Those unable to provide these personal identifiers can apply through an exceptions process where they will be asked by their Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) to provide documentary evidence to confirm their identity such as a passport or driving license. EROs have been trained to support electors through this process if necessary.