Asked by: Chris Ruane (Labour - Vale of Clwyd)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions he has had with the Minister for the Cabinet Office on increasing electoral registration and voter turnout in Wales.
Answered by Alun Cairns
I have regular discussions with the Minister for the Cabinet Office and the Minister for the Constitution on a range of issues, including electoral matters. The Government’s major reforms to the electoral registration system, including the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration have resulted in record levels of electors registering to vote in Wales and participating in our democracy.
The Government set out its priorities for democratic engagement for 2019 and beyond in its report Democratic Engagement: Respecting, Protecting and Promoting Our Democracy, published in January. The report highlights the Government's commitment to ensuring everyone can make their voice heard free from abuse, making voting easier and more accessible for vulnerable and under-registered groups, and introducing measures to protect electors’ votes.
The Wales Act 2017 devolved powers over National Assembly elections and local government elections in Wales. Officials from the UK Government and the Welsh Government are discussing areas for greater collaboration such as canvass reform and voter registration.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support political reform in Armenia following the Velvet Revolution and the parliamentary elections in December 2018.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The United Kingdom strongly supports political reform in Armenia. The Minister for Europe and the Americas discussed reform and the importance of democratic institutions with Armenia's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, at the Munich Security Conference this month. Armenia was included in the Good Governance Fund for the first time in 2018. The Fund provides up to £3 million of support per year for programmes in Armenia that strengthen parliamentary oversight and judicial reform, and support economic reforms in areas such as taxation. The UK provided targeted funding to support preparations for the December 2018 parliamentary elections through the Electoral Support Project in Armenia, implemented by the UN Development Programme. Following the elections, British Embassy Yerevan continues to work closely with the Government of Armenia and other donors to identify areas where UK support can provide the greatest benefit.
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Hemsworth)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the subject of imprints for digital electoral material was discussed in meetings the Minister for the Consitution had with Facebook and Google on electoral reform in September 2018.
Answered by Chloe Smith
On 29 July 2018, the Cabinet Office launched an open consultation entitled ‘Protecting the Debate: Intimidating, Influence and Information’, which seeks views on proposed changes to electoral law, including the inclusion of imprints on digital campaign materials. The consultation closed on 28 October 2018 and is available at GOV.UK.
The Government is considering the contributions of all interested parties and will publish a response to the feedback received. Facebook and Google, along with other relevant organisations, were encouraged to submit responses.
Asked by: Tommy Sheppard (Scottish National Party - Edinburgh East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans he has in place for his work stream on electoral reform in preparation for the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Government will continue to keep the electoral system under review and where appropriate will consider what changes, if any, may be necessary in preparation for and as a consequence of the UK leaving the European Union.
As the UK will cease to be a member of the European Union on 29th March 2019, we will not be taking part in future European Parliamentary elections, including those which are currently scheduled to be held from 23rd to 26th May 2019.
The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 repeals the underlying pieces of legislation providing for the holding of European Parliamentary elections in the UK, and we have made a Statutory Instrument under powers in the Act that repeals all associated legislation.
Asked by: Lord Grocott (Labour - Life peer)
Question
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to the Written Answers by the Chairman of Committees (Lord Laming) on 12 May 2016 (HL8153) and the Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith) on 26 November (HL11454), why the cost of a Liberal Democrat hereditary peers' by-election, payable to Electoral Reform Services, has risen from £300 to £570.
Answered by Lord McFall of Alcluith
The costs differ as, exceptionally, Electoral Reform Services were not involved in the print and distribution of the voting packs for the Liberal Democrat by-election in 2016. On that occasion, these tasks were handled by a member of House staff. The £570 figure quoted is from the successful tender submitted by Electoral Reform Services whom we expect to carry out all functions in future by-elections.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to call upon the government of Ukraine to lift the imposition of martial law to ensure that forthcoming elections are free and fair.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In response to Russian aggression, the Ukrainian Rada (parliament) adopted a law on 26 November on the approval of a Presidential Decree on the introduction of Martial Law. The law came into force for a fixed period of 30 days from 28 November and applies in 10 border regions. We welcome President Poroshenko's reassurances that martial law will not be used to restrict the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian citizens and that full mobilisation will only be considered in case of further Russian aggression. The UK continues to provide support for transparency and accountability through electoral reform in Ukraine, including technical assistance for reform of the Central Election Commission. We welcome the Ukrainian Parliament's resolution this week confirming Presidential elections will proceed as scheduled on 31 March 2019. We also welcome the President's assurances that he is actively seeking to ensure that community elections scheduled for 23 December can proceed as planned.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to section 9 of his Department's policy statement, Proposals on reform of the annual canvass, published on 5 October 2018, what assessment his Department has made of response methods to Household Enquiry Forms in order to improve appropriate messaging and encourage responses.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Electoral Commission (EC) has responsibility for designing registration forms, which are subject to the approval of the Minister for the Cabinet Office following consultation with the Scottish Ministers in respect of forms for use in Scotland and the Welsh Ministers in respect of forms for use in Wales.
We are working closely with the Electoral Commission on the implementation of canvass reform. Canvass reform will lead to new requirements for canvass forms. We understand the EC intends to undertake user testing on the new forms, with a view to making sure the forms are as clear as possible for the citizen.
The Electoral Commission has worked with the Behavioural Insight Team on certain forms of registration correspondence. Information is available here: https://www.behaviouralinsights.co.uk/trial-results/improving-the-annual-electoral-canvass/
EROs are free to offer a range of ways to respond to a Higher Education Framework. Currently, many EROs offer text message, online and paper-based response methods. As part of canvass reform, we intend to with EROs and the Electoral Commission to make sure it is as easy as possible for citizens to respond to requests for information from their local ERO.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to section 9 of his Department's policy statement, Proposals for reform of the annual canvass, published on 5 October 2018, how the Behavioural Insight Team has been involved in communications and the design of registration forms.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Electoral Commission (EC) has responsibility for designing registration forms, which are subject to the approval of the Minister for the Cabinet Office following consultation with the Scottish Ministers in respect of forms for use in Scotland and the Welsh Ministers in respect of forms for use in Wales.
We are working closely with the Electoral Commission on the implementation of canvass reform. Canvass reform will lead to new requirements for canvass forms. We understand the EC intends to undertake user testing on the new forms, with a view to making sure the forms are as clear as possible for the citizen.
The Electoral Commission has worked with the Behavioural Insight Team on certain forms of registration correspondence. Information is available here: https://www.behaviouralinsights.co.uk/trial-results/improving-the-annual-electoral-canvass/
EROs are free to offer a range of ways to respond to a Higher Education Framework. Currently, many EROs offer text message, online and paper-based response methods. As part of canvass reform, we intend to with EROs and the Electoral Commission to make sure it is as easy as possible for citizens to respond to requests for information from their local ERO.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to section 7 of his Department's policy statement, Proposals on reform of the annual canvass, whether the Government has assessed the potential merits of naming individuals such as landlords, concierge and management companies as responsible officers that are mandated to provide Electoral Registration Officers with details that are required in order to send through an Invitation to Register form to residents.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Government is currently analysing the responses to our consultation, from Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and others. As part of this we are considering the range of responsible officers that could be required to provide EROs with information to facilitate registration.
Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his consultation on proposals for the reform of the annual canvass, what steps he is taking to put in place (a) an effective year-round registration process and (b) longer-term plans for electoral registration reform.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone who is eligible to vote is able to do so.
Online registration, introduced in 2014, has already transformed the way many people register to vote by making it easier, simpler and faster. This can be done online at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote in as little as 5 minutes. Three quarters (75.2%) of the over 36 million applications to register to vote since June 2014 were made online and the user satisfaction rate with the website is consistently more than 90%
We keep the registration system under review at all times, especially with a view to its modernising. In doing so, we work closely with a wide range of partners such as the Electoral Commission, the Association of Electoral Administrators, the Scottish Assessors Association and SOLACE (Society of Local Authority Chief Executives).