Category Archives: Electoral Commission

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25 Jan 2017

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Accountability, EDDC, Electoral Commission, Freedom of Information Act, Mark Williams CEO EDDC, Transparency, Voting

Scotland plans to stop council CEOs from getting extra money as Electoral Officers

At present, council CEOs all receive extra payments for this task and are not subject to Freedom of Information laws about how they spend their money on it.

“Senior council executives in Scotland should lose their system of multi-thousand pound payments for acting as returning officers at elections and referendums, according to MSPs.

A report from the Scottish Parliament’s local government committee found that the payments regime for overseeing the conduct and counting of elections, a role usually taken on by council chief executives, was insufficiently transparent, inconsistent, and little understood by the general public.

Bob Doris, the committee convener, said: “We believe that all costs associated with elections should be processed around the principles of openness and transparency if the public are to have confidence in how our elections are run.

“There is a lack of transparency around the value of these payments and how they are allocated,” Doris said.

“We heard that payments can range from £2,500 in Orkney and Shetland to over £16,000 in Edinburgh and may reportedly be worth as much £1m in total.” …”
http://www.publicfinance.co.uk/news/2017/01/scrap-special-payments-scots-returning-officers-say-msps

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22 Sep 2016

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Accountability, Electoral Commission, Mark Williams CEO EDDC, Scrutiny, Transparency, Voting

“Election officers urge “root and branch” review of electoral system”

We know all about election problems in East Devon! Indeed our Returning Officer and CEO Mark Williams was called to Parliament to explain our omnishambles when 6,000 voters disappeared from the electoral roll in the year before general and local elections.

And an interesting point made on the declarations of electoral administration expenses.

“Election officers were “pushed to the absolute limit” by this year’s glut of polls, the Association of Electoral Administrators has said in a report.

This covered the period of local elections last May and the referendum on European Union membership in June, both conducted on new registers under the individual electoral registration system.

The report said election administrators would recall 2016 “as the year that the system came closer to collapse than ever before”.

The combination of May and June polls left administrators “stretched beyond belief” as they struggled to run multiple local polls and the referendum back to back, the AEA said.

This was complicated by the 48-hour extension to the registration deadline for the referendum.

The AEA warned that the system would be unable to cope with further burdens unless it were reformed.

Chief executive John Turner said: “What is required is a root and branch review of the whole arrangements for registration and the conduct of elections rather than more adjustment and change to a system so deeply rooted in the 19th century.

“Many of the problems that currently exist and which surfaced again at this year’s elections are because of the historic nature of the systems in place and which are increasingly becoming unfit for purpose.”

The AEA said the Government should implement the Law Commission’s
recommendations for a single Electoral Administration Act setting out the high-level framework governing electoral registration, elections and referendums in the UK, with the operational detail of registration, absent voting, and elections contained in secondary legislation.

It should also publish an assessment of the risks associated with any proposed changes to legislation before making any changes.

The Cabinet Office should ensure that administration expenses claims submitted are audited and settled within the same financial year, the AEA said.

It also called for staff to be exempt from auto-enrolment for pensions when they were working on elections and referendums, as opposed to their normal duties, to avoid creating a liability for election administrators.

The AEA sounded the alarm over the multiple polls due on 7 May 2020, when a UK Parliamentary general election, police and crime commissioner elections and those for numerous local authorities and elected mayors are due to coincide. It called on the Government to consider changing the date of some of the polls involved.”

http://localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28433%3Aelection-officers-urge-root-and-branch-review-of-electoral-system&catid=59&Itemid=27

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8 Jul 2016

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Accountability, Corruption, Democracy, Electoral Commission, General Election, Spin, Transparency, Voting

MPs election expenses – not forgotten by Democratic Audit

Probably not good news for Police and Crime Commissioner Hernandez!

With all the constitutional chaos following the EU referendum result,
it’s easy to forget that up to 30 MPs are still being investigated for
breaking election spending limits by twenty police forces across the
country. But we’re still on the case!

Last week we hosted a meeting of politicians and campaigners to talk
about two things:

How can we bring MPs who have broken the rules to justice?
How can we fix the broken election expenses system?

Our friendly legal experts had some good news – there are legal options
to pursue MPs who have broken election spending limits even if the
police aren’t already investigating them! The allegations that the
police are already investigating could just be the tip of the iceberg in
this election expenses scandal.

It shouldn’t take a crack team of investigative journalists to keep our
elections fair and protect democracy. One big obstacle in the way of
holding MPs to account is that election expenses aren’t publicly
available. The only way you can access them is by going down to your
local council offices. We are working behind the scenes to change this
in time for the next general election (whenever that may be!) We will be
talking to the Electoral Commission to put pressure on local councils to
make this vital information available online.

With Brexit and Chilcot dominating the news, the election expenses
scandal could drop off the radar. We won’t let that happen.

Best wishes,

Alexandra Runswick
Director, Unlock Democracy

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1 Jun 2016

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Accountability, Electoral Commission, General Election, Voting

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Election expenses scandal – latest update from Channel 4

“… The new revelations come as the Conservative Party take the unprecedented step of trying to oppose a court extension to the police investigation into whether it correctly declared the money they spent in South Thanet. That hearing itself was in a closed court session not open to the public or press.

The Conservative Party bought in James Laddie QC, one of the country’s top lawyers, to attend the closed session at Folkestone Magistrates Court on Tuesday May 24. …

… News
Channel 4 News understands that there are 18 police forces up and down the country that have been given or are seeking an extension to the time limit relating to election expenses.

The Conservative party is currently only attempting to block in South Thanet an extension to the legal time limit that the local police force has to investigate election returns.

Today, new evidence obtained by Channel 4 News reveals that an important battlebus visit on election day to South Thanet, up to a dozen promotional videos made for the local candidate, and a conference room used by a minister to campaign on local issues for the candidate appear to have never been declared.

Get caught up – and read the full story of Election Expenses Exposed here.
The Conservative Party told Channel 4 News: “The Party always took the view that our national Battlebus, a highly-publicised campaign activity, was part of the National Return, and declared it as such. All spending has been correctly recorded in accordance with the law.”

Beat Farage
In the South Thanet contest, UKIP Nigel Farage was defeated by the now Conservative MP Craig Mackinley – by 2,800 votes. He was assisted by tens of thousands of pounds of spending that appears to have been used to help local campaigning – enough to take him beyond the £15,000 cap.

The new revelations come as the Conservative Party take the unprecedented step of trying to oppose a court extension to the police investigation into whether it correctly declared the money they spent in South Thanet. That hearing itself was in a closed court session not open to the public or press.

The Conservative Party bought in James Laddie QC, one of the country’s top lawyers, to attend the closed session at Folkestone Magistrates Court on Tuesday May 24.

Battlebus – final stop
Channel 4 News understands that on 7 May – election day itself – was the biggest campaigning day for the Mackinlay campaign. Staff and activists on the bus appear to have taken part in local campaigning to get out the vote for Craig Mackinlay. He tweeted: “Thanks to @MrMark Clarke and his @roadtrip2015 #battlebus2015 — 60 people on the way to lead charge in #SouthThanet.”

We can reveal that none of the £400 costs incurred by this Battlebus visit appear to have been declared.

Team 2015
Channel 4 News has also obtained evidence of repeated visits by bus loads of Team 2015 activists who appear to have campaigned for Craig Mackinlay MP. These include visits on 4 April, 9 April, April 11 and 12, and 26 April.

We have obtained video footage of the Team 2015 visit on 9 April which shows the then-party’s chairman Grant Shapps encouraging the activists to campaign for the local candidate Craig Mackinlay, who thanks the activists for supporting him.

None of the costs incurred on these Team 2015 visits appear to be on Mr Mackinlay’s candidate spending return, despite clear guidance from the Electoral Commission that the costs of campaigning for the candidate must be declared by them in order to promote fairness.

Links to Conservative party headquarters
In the Broadstairs campaign office – the campaign schedule was photographed by Emily Ashton, from Buzzfeed.

It stated that on the 9 April, the Transport Minister John Hayes MP visited Manston Airport which was at the time considered a major local issue in South Thanet. It was not a matter considered to be of national significance.

Channel 4 News has obtained evidence that a conference room was booked at the airport Holiday Inn hotel for a Conservative Party event on April 9. The booking was made in the name of CCHQ staffer Marion Little OBE.

None of the costs associated with this event appear to have been declared in the South Thanet election spending return. Nor does it appear to have been declared nationally.

This appears to fit into a pattern of apparently undeclared spending involving senior figures at CCHQ that has been identified by Channel 4 News in previous investigations.

The Electoral Commission is already investigating three by-elections in 2014, which took place in a “regulated period” when all spending should have been declared.

In those by-elections and in South Thanet, Channel 4 News obtained hotel receipts in Newark, Clacton, Rochester totalling some 770 nights of accommodation which were booked under Marion Little’s name and home address.

We have also identified some £4,000 of bookings made by Ms Little at the Premier Inn in Margate.

The law says any money spent promoting the local candidate must be declared by the candidate and their agent on their local spending return. Failure to declare is a criminal offence.

The hearing on whether Kent Police will be given a time extension – already granted to 18 police forces up and down the country – is due to take place on Wednesday next week. …”

http://www.channel4.com/news/new-expenses-scandal-emerges-as-tories-fight-police-in-court

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27 May 2016

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Accountability, Electoral Commission, General Election, Voting

Calderdale Tory Association has accounts seized

The chair of the Calderdale Conservatives Association has resigned after growing internal controversy over its accounts being submitted to the Electoral Commission.

A sourced leaked the resignation emails to Political Scrapbook this morning.

In an email sent yesterday afternoon by Charles Moran, ex-chair of the CVCA, said he was resigning after a “breakdown in relations” with the MP and two officers of the Association.

But the main reason for his resignation seems to be launch of a criminal investigation into financial irregularities at the Association.

An email from Councillor Rob Holden, Deputy Chair of the Calder Valley Conservatives, leaked to Political Scrapbook, says that West Yorkshire police seized the accounts in connection with their enquiries.

West Yorkshire Police released a statement to Political Scrapbook this afternoon:

“Police in Calderdale have been made aware of an allegation of financial irregularity. A criminal investigation has now been launched to examine this allegation, and is its early stages.”

In a phone conversation with Political Scrapbook this afternoon, deputy chair cllr Rob Holden confirmed the resignation and the email. He added:

“All I can say right now is that West Yorkshire police have mine and the Association’s full cooperation.
The blog Impolite Conversation claims that Craig Whittaker MP’s office is to be investigated next, but we could not confirm that.”

The emails below give more insight into why the chair resigned, and why West Yorkshire Police is now investigating.

More on this developing story soon…

LEAKED EMAILS

———-

Subject: Resignation CVCA
Sent: 26 May 2016 14:03
From: Charles Moran
To: Rob Holden, Jasbir Singh
Cc:
Dear Rob

It is with regret that I am writing to you to tender my resignation as Chairman of CVCA as of today’s date.

As you are aware, it has taken some time to get to the bottom of the Association’s finances, a task you requested be carried out last October.

Whilst there are still outstanding issues with the accounts I have submitted to the Electoral Commission,it is a best estimate and I have also copied it to Andy Stedman at Compliance.

The reason I have been unable to accurately finalise the accounts is as a result of missing records that have been requested from the Treasurer on several occasions and have not been supplied.

Attached to this email is a copy of a Chartered Accountant’s report which states that the accounts are not being kept as they should be. There are issues regarding the recording of cash receipts, lack of cash recording with no receipts issued for payments received, missing invoices and a lack of authorisation for expenditure. Clearly the Executive has a responsibility to correct these shortcomings.

You will also be aware of the toxic nature of my tenure as Chairman, due to the breakdown in relations with the MP and two officers of the Association. This situation is unacceptable and steps need to be taken to separate the Parliamentary Party from the Voluntary Party.

The fact that the MP is able to not only access the Association’s funds without authority from the Chairman or the Executive is a matter of grave concern. The Constitution is clear that all funds are controlled by the Association and its Executive, the fact that two officers are able to withdraw funds without authority is clearly in breach of the rules.

The fact that I, as Chairman, am not on the mandate and neither are you, the Deputy Fund Raising and Membership, is also a matter which I consider to be unacceptable.

Whilst it has been difficult for me as Chairman for the past year, I can’t help feeling disappointed that once again we have failed to take outright control of Calderdale Council, largely as a result of resources being diverted to a safe seat at the expense of target seats. We lost one of the target seats by less than a100 votes.

Above attached is a schedule of missing information, Chartered Accountant’s report and a copy of the estimated accounts that have been sent to Compliance and the Electoral Commission. Would you mind ensuring that these documents together with my email to you are circulated with the AGM calling notice to all members when you decide to call it please?

Regards

Charles

———-

Subject: FW: Resignation CVCA
Sent: 26 May 2016 14:27
From: Rob Holden
To: Brighouse Campaign Centre
Cc:

Dear member.

I am writing to you further to receiving the resignation of Mr Charles Moran as Chairman of the Calder Valley Conservative Association. I feel saddened that he has felt the need to stand down but thoroughly understand his reasons following his extremely poor treatment by certain members of the Association. The accounts (albeit incomplete) have finally been filed with the Electoral Commission.

Attached are the findings of the financial review that I requested back in October 2015 and I have to say that they do not make great reading as far as record keeping and propriety are concerned.

Yesterday the accounts of the Association were seized by the Police in connection with enquiries they are currently undertaking; the officer from the fraud and financial irregularities team has been assured that they will receive the ongoing co-operation of the Association with their investigation.

I am currently in discussions with the Area Chairman regarding the next steps concerning the AGM etc. and as soon as possible I will provide everyone with an update.

I would like to thank Charles for the considerable contribution that he has made to both the Association and the party as a whole and hope that now the financial review has been completed, lessons will be learned and we can move the Association forward.

Kindest regards

Councillor Rob Holden
Deputy Chairman, Calder Valley Conservatives.

https://politicalscrapbook.net/2016/05/calderdale-conservatives-chair-resigns-after-police-investigation-over-election-expenses-emails-leaked/

Further information on MP and missing invoices here:

http://www.impoliteconversation.co.uk/police-seize-calder-valley-conservative-association-accounts

Local Lib Dems view:
http://calderdalelibdems.focusteam.org/2016/05/27/grave-concern-following-the-seizure-of-calderdale-conservatives-accounts-by-the-police-and-the-resignation-of-the-chair-of-the-conservative-association/

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12 May 2016

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Accountability, East Devon Tories, Electoral Commission, Transparency, Voting

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Electoral Commission takes Conservative Party to court over election expenses

“It’s awkward timing for David Cameron, who launches his anti-corruption summit today in London:

he Electoral Commission is taking the Conservative Party to the High Court over the election spending scandal.

The Mirror [ but at the instigation of Channel 4 News] revealed two months ago that at least 24 Tory MPs had help from notorious battle buses ferrying hundreds of volunteers to marginal constituencies during the 2015 general election but didn’t declare any of the spending as required by law.

Breaching spending limits is a criminal offence and could lead to calls for by-elections.

It comes at an awkward time for David Cameron, who today kicks off an anti-corruption summit in London.

The slowly-unfolding scandal has led to several MPs and one Police and Crime Commissioner coming under criminal investigation by police.

The Electoral Commission are taking the Tories to the High Court to force them to reveal documents detailing the spending on Battle Buses ahead of the 2015 general election.

The Commission have already asked the Tories twice for the documents, but they have only provided “limited” disclosure.

Political parties have a legal obligation to provide full spending disclosures to the Commission on request.

Bob Posner, Director of Party and Election Finance and Legal Counsel at the Electoral Commission said: “If parties under investigation do not comply with our requirements for the disclosure of relevant material in reasonable time and after sufficient opportunity to do so, the Commission can seek recourse through the courts.”

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/electoral-commission-takes-tories-high-7952712

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30 Mar 2016

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Electoral Commission, Voting

UK: the worst score for electoral integrity in Western Europe

The UK scores worst in electoral integrity in Western Europe. Here’s why:

The UK performs poorly when it comes to issues of electoral integrity, lagging behind European neighbours but does particularly poorly when compared with Scandinavia – which as is the case in many fields outperforms Britain.

Here, Pippa Norris looks at the reasons why, pointing to voter registration procedures, electoral laws, media coverage, constituency boundaries, and the counting and results process:

Issues of electoral malpractice have received growing attention in the UK. The House of Commons Library briefing on Electoral offences since 2010 gives details of the reports published by the Electoral Commission and the Associations of Chief Police Officers on cases of alleged malpractice.

Questions have arisen over insecure postal ballots, proxy voting, and fraudulent practices. The Electoral Commission issued warnings of potential ‘ethnic kinship’ voting in British Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities, a practice thought to make these areas particularly vulnerable to electoral fraud.

Sir Eric Pickles, the Government’s Anti-Corruption Champion, has reviewed electoral fraud to make recommendations on what could be done to tackle the problem.Dominic Grieve, the former attorney general, has claimed that electoral fraud is a ‘growing phenomena’ in British elections.

Polling Day in the UK General Election

The UK General Election on May 7th 2015 certainly generated several media reports of alleged malpractices and shortfalls.

On polling day, technical glitches were reported in Hackney and Dorset following problems with the electoral roll and distribution of cards for the incorrect polling station, blamed by officials on information technology and printing errors.

Bournemouth council apologized after 100 people were unable to cast their vote in the local elections because an administrative blunder had led to the wrong ballot papers being issued. Earlier 250,000 ballot papers went missing after a printer’s van was stolen in Eastbourne and Hastings.

The Electoral Commission investigated complaints that some overseas voters had not received their voting packs in time. The Guardian reported that Metropolitan police received 18 allegations of electoral fraud in the run up to polling day.

In Tower Hamlets, the High Court suspended the Mayor, Lutfur Rahman, after he was found guilty of falsifying postal votes and putting undue pressure on voters at polling stations during the 2014 local and European elections.
In Darlington, the BBC reported that the UKIP candidate’s name was missing on ballot papers.

Finally, the Telegraph reported that the Scottish Tory party leader tweeted claims of voter intimidation in Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale, with the allegations investigated by local police.

None of these were major issues, compared with problems common in many other countries, but they may still have undermined public confidence in the electoral process. When asked beforehand in the British Election Study, the majority of citizens expected that the election would be conducted fairly, but almost one fifth (18%) thought that it would be unfairly conducted. …”

http://www.democraticaudit.com/?p=20682

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10 Feb 2016

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Corruption, Electoral Commission, Voting

Electoral Reform Society compiling interactive map of “rotten boroughs” – stick YOUR pin in it!

Rotten Boroughs – Tell us your story

One Party States. Uncontested seats. There’s something very wrong with local government in England and Wales.

Campaign background

Good local government depends on decent local democracy. But many of us are now living in Rotten Boroughs – unaccountable and unresponsive, where our votes don’t make a difference.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

You can help us win the argument for fair votes in England and Wales. Have you been let down by local democracy? Do you live in a Rotten Borough?

http://action.electoral-reform.org.uk/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1754&ea.campaign.id=21160

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31 Jan 2016

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Electoral Commission, Voting

“Electoral register loses estimated 800,000 people”

“An estimated 800,000 people have dropped off the electoral register since the government introduced changes to the system, with students in university towns at highest risk of being disenfranchised, the Guardian has learned.

… Overall 1.8% of voters are estimated to have dropped off the register across the population and figures compiled by the Labour party found the register had shrunk more dramatically in areas with a high population of students, such as Canterbury, which has seen a 13% drop, and Cambridge and Dundee West, both with an 11% fall.

Gloria De Piero, the shadow minister for electoral registration, said the data revealed an alarming reduction in students on the register, which is likely to raise fears that election results could be swayed by missing blocks of like-minded voters. …”

http://gu.com/p/4ga5d

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25 Jan 2016

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Democracy, Electoral Commission, Transparency

“Government fail to declare reappointed National Gallery trustee is Tory donor”

” …David Cameron granted City financier, John Singer, a second term on the board of the Trafalgar Square gallery last week.

In keeping with rules to ensure that public appointments are made on merit, a Number 10 statement said that the financier had declared “no political activity” over the last five years.

But documents at the Electoral Commission uncovered by the Guardian show that Singer, the former European chairman of Advent International, has given the Tories £146,202.38 over the past five years, £48,500 of which was handed over in the last year. Since 2005, he has given £302,703 to the party.
The failure to disclose donations has prompted concern among MPs and staff at the gallery that Singer’s reappointment is part of a gradual ‘politicisation by stealth’ of the gallery. …”

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jan/25/government-fail-declare-reappointed-national-gallery-trustee-tory-donor

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22 Jan 2016

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Democracy, Electoral Commission, Voting

10 million people may be missing from the electoral roll

… “As the Smith Institute report on individual voter registration, published on the eve of the switch, highlighted, as many as 10 million people are likely now to be missing from the electoral register. That figure is equivalent to 20% of the electorate and more than the votes the Labour party received at the general election.

There are good reasons why updating an ageing system was needed, not least to increase the accuracy of the electoral roll. And faith in the democratic process does rely on the system being free from voter fraud. However, it is also reliant on elections reflecting the views of the whole population. But rather than taking their time on such a sensitive and important issue the government has rushed ahead and ignored a weight of evidence.

Left by the wayside was the views of the independent Electoral Commission, which argued strongly that another year was needed to vastly improve the completeness of the register. Instead, hundreds of thousands of people in our major cities are now being disenfranchised – half a million in London and 100,000 in Glasgow, estimates suggest.

The attitude in parliament towards such an impact demonstrates a laziness in understanding coupled with a cavalier approach to the democratic rights of citizens. For example, Eleanor Laing MP (the former shadow minister for justice) told the BBC that “if a young person cannot organize the filling in of a form that registers them to vote, they don’t deserve the right to vote”.

Whilst such comments should stick in a democrat’s craw, the impact of the change is even harder to swallow. Groups often overlooked by the government are most likely to slip off the register altogether – young people, students, ethnic minorities and those renting privately. All too conveniently for the government, such groups are less likely to vote them back in. Furthermore, not only will this lead people being denied the opportunity to have a say over who governs them but it is also likely to skew the wider electoral system too.

The upcoming boundary review of parliamentary seats will now be based on an even more incomplete electoral roll. As those who are excluded are more likely to be found in cities, there is likely to be disproportionately fewer MPs representing urban areas than the population should demand. Want to see who that will benefit? Just take a look at a map of the last election.

Such facts make it hard not to believe that the government has played fast and loose with people’s democratic rights for political gain. The challenge now is to shame government into upping its game to get more people registered. Failure to do so will make it hard to accept any future boundary review based on an electoral roll so tarnished.

More seriously still, rather than improving the electoral system the disenfranchisement of millions will take us backwards on our democratic journey. ”

http://www.democraticaudit.com/?p=19033it.com/?p=19033

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15 Dec 2015

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Electoral Commission, Mark Williams CEO EDDC, Voting

New electoral roll: Electoral Registration Officer spins and spins!

In this week’s local ” View from …” papers there is a terrifically gross puff job from Mark Williams, CEO and Electoral Returning Officer at EDDC about his success in getting more people on the electoral roll this year.

image

He particularly mentions that 35 canvassers personally visited 5,116 homes after they did not return original forms.

Recall that, last year, Mr Williams was hauled before a Parliamentary Committee because he had “lost” more than 6,000 voters from an earlier electoral roll, despite numerous developments, including Cranbrook, having added many voters.

http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/East-Mid-Devon-district-council-chief-executives/story-24538976-detail/story.html

At the time he said that it was his personal preference NOT to send out canvassers (citing the danger of sending them out at night in rural areas). His preference was to telephone people, though he was rather hazy on how he got their telephone numbers.

It should also be noted that no figures ars given for the new total number on the electoral roll compared to last year.

See more comprehensive reports by Owl here:

https://eastdevonwatch.org/2014/11/17/the-missing-6000-plus-voters-where-does-the-buck-stop-does-it-stop-at-all-is-there-even-a-buck/

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23 Oct 2015

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Electoral Commission, Voting

Lords asked to block Conservative plans to disenfranchise up to 1.9 million voters

Tory plans to wipe 1.9m names off the electoral register are set to be blocked by a House of Lords revolt, following advice from Britain’s voting watchdog. Liberal Democrat and Labour peers are poised to vote to halt Government plans to slash the electoral roll ahead of next May’s elections for local councils, the Scottish Parliament and London Mayor.

Despite warnings from the Electoral Commission about the dangers of disenfranchising legitimate voters, ministers believe many of the names are bogus and have speeded up by 12 months plans to “modernise” the system with individual registration. The independent watchdog has now issued a briefing note urging peers to vote against the Government next Tuesday, in what will be the second crunch clash between the Commons and the Lords, after the row over tax credits cuts.

The note, seen by The HuffPost UK, states that acting before the outcome of its annual canvass of voters before the outcome of “means the Government has acted without reliable information on how many redundant entries will be removed at the end of this year and how many eligible electors will need to re-register ahead of May 2016.”

“Taking into account…the scale and importance of the polls scheduled for next May, we continue to recommend that the end of transition should take place in December 2016 as currently specified in legislation” It concludes: “We therefore recommend that Parliament does not approve this order.”

HuffPost UK understands that both Labour and the Lib Dems will order a three-line whip to ‘annul’ the Tory statutory instrument on the changes – and with an in-built anti-Tory majority they are set to win the day.

Labour’s Lord Kennedy has today tabled an amendment to Lib Dem peer Lord Tyler’s motion to annul the legislation, “on the grounds that it goes against the advice of the Electoral Commission”. In his Labour conference speech last month Jeremy Corbyn warned: “We know why the Tories are doing it. They want to gerrymander next year’s Mayoral election in London by denying hundreds of thousands of Londoners their right to vote.”

The new Individual Electoral Registration (IER) process will particularly affect those in rented accommodation and urban areas, who are less likely to register, and students, because universities and colleges no longer ‘block register’ students living in halls of residence.

Campaign groups have complained that in areas such as Hackney in London, one in four voters could lose their rights to be on the electoral roll. But writing for Huff Post UK, Cabinet Office minister John Penrose said that the changes would bring Britain into line with ‘every other serious democracy in the world’.

In its briefing note, the Electoral Commission makes clear that it would be wiser to stick to original plans to complete the reforms by December 2016 rather than December 2015. “The earlier timetable puts the greater onus on electors as they will need to take action in order to ensure they are able to remain registered and participate in the May 2016 polls,” it says.”By contrast, the later timetable puts the greater responsibility on EROs (Electoral Registration Officers) to identify and take steps to remove redundant or inaccurate entries.”

Ministers usually accept the advice of the independent watchdog and in September decided to fully adopt its recommendations to change the question in the EU referendum.

Source: Huffington Post UK online, today

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20 Oct 2015

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East Devon Electoral/Returning Officer, Electoral Commission, Voting

Two weeks to find 1.9 million voters

PLEASE try to identify and get the missing voters registered – we know from bitter experience we can’t leave this to our Electoral Registration Officer – who had to appear before Parliament to explain why he “lost” around 6,000 voters in East Devon prior to the last election

In December, up to 1.9m people will be deleted from the voting register.

The way we register to vote is changing. Councils have been transferring everyone from the old voting register to the new one, but they haven’t finished the job. The government originally planned to give councils until December 2016 to re-register the missing voters. But over the summer they announced that they would speed up the process. Anyone who hasn’t been transferred to the new register will be deleted in December – that’s up to 1.9m people.

Why are the government rushing the job? In April, the new voting register will be used to work out new constituency boundaries for the 2020 election. Anyone who is removed from the register in December won’t be counted. That means areas with lots of voters who haven’t been transferred will get fewer seats in Parliament.

Tell your MP to sign EDM 333 to save the missing voters

http://act.unlockdemocracy.org.uk/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1810&ea.campaign.id=43126&ea.url.id=474963

These changes will be passed on November 2nd without even a vote in the House of Commons – unless enough MPs request a debate by signing an Early Day Motion.

Please write to your MP to ask them to sign EDM 333.

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5 Oct 2015

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Corruption, EDDC, Electoral Commission, Transparency

The (huge, extra) cost of one party councils

A report from the Electoral Commission states:

 Study shows ‘one-party councils’ could be wasting £2.6bn a year in lost procurement savings

 University of Cambridge research analyses 132,000 public procurement contracts between 2009 and 2013 to identify ‘red flags’ for corruption

 One-party councils have on average 50% higher ‘risk of corruption’ than politically competitive councils

 First report to use ‘Big Data’ to look at the financial dangers of single-party authorities

Click to access THE%20COST%20OF%20ONE-PARTY%20COUNCILS.pdf

The lead researcher reports:

“Fazekas said: “The persistence of uncontested seats and one-party dominated councils at the local level is a cause for concern across England in terms of quality of public services, value for money, and government responsiveness to citizen needs. One particular high-risk area is the integrity of government contracting when controls of corruption are weak.

“In modern democracies, one of the main pillars of good government and control of corruption is elections and electoral accountability. The change of political leadership or the risk of such change is expected to discipline holders of political power to use it for the public good rather than their own private benefit.”

And ERS chief executive, Katie Ghose, said: “It’s not true of all one-party councils, but it’s bound to be true of some – and this new research suggests that lack of scrutiny could be costing us dear.

“The fact that taxpayers in England could be losing out on £2.6bn a year in potential savings is a damning indictment of an electoral system that gives huge artificial majorities to parties and undermines scrutiny. This kind of waste would be unjustifiable at the best of times, let alone during a period of austerity.

“The risk of corruption at the local level should set off alarm bells in Whitehall. The public are getting a poor deal through our voting system.”

Josiah Mortimer, communications officer at the ERS, said that a fairer and more proportional electoral system – “such as the one used in Scotland for local elections” – would make one-party councils “a thing of the past”.

http://www.publicsectorexecutive.com/Public-Sector-News/one-party-councils-waste-26bn-a-year-through-corrupt-procurement

The problem is, of course, that one-party councils keep much secret because they are afraid that if we knew what is really going on, they would lose power. Holding on to power (and the inherent or perceived or real risk of corruption is seemingly much more important than governing ethically.

We wonder how many majority party councillors prefer silence about corruption to whistleblowing – too many we suspect.

We also have to question the role of the police in council corruption issues – where often they seem to lack the desire, the will and/ or the resources to make investigations – perhaps wary of covering up their own inadequacies in this area and the disruption of cosy cross- interest relationships which keep the wheels of power oiled.

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9 Sep 2015

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Democracy, Electoral Commission, Voting

“10 weeks to save democracy”

’10 Weeks To Save Democracy’ Before 2 Million People Are Wiped Off Electoral Register’

…”Two million people could be dropped from the list by the end of the year if they don’t identify themselves as a “genuine voter”, thanks to the government’s “rushed” changes to registration rules, according to anti-extremism group HOPE Not Hate.

The changes – which could happen without people realising – represent a loss of voting rights on a scale that is “almost inconceivable”, the group claims.”

…”Nick Lowles, HOPE Not Hate Chief Executive, said: “Originally there was another year to get all these people verified. Instead of which we are about to see the greatest disenfranchisement in British history.

“The scale of it is almost inconceivable. And the situation is actually going to get worse in the next few days as students return to university and have to register individually.

“There are just 10 weeks left to save democracy,” he said.

The two million who could be removed would join an existing eight million ‘missing’ voters, people who are eligible to vote, but don’t according to HOPE Not Hate.

The total of 10 million ‘missing Britons’ is the equivalent of losing the entire population of London, Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow and Sheffield combined from the electoral roll.

Earlier this year the then-Labour leader Ed Miliband warned that nearly a million people have already “disappeared” from the register. Labour said the figure was a result of what it called the “hasty” way the Government introduced individual voter registration.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/09/09/missing-voters-electoral-register-individual-electoral-registration-_n_8110676.html

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2 Sep 2015

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East Devon Electoral/Returning Officer, EDDC, Electoral Commission, Mark Williams CEO EDDC, Voting

“Tories accused of ‘shameful abuse of power’ over electoral roll changes”

The London Evening Standard published this article today. Of course, we know all about this in East Devon, as our Electoral Returning Officer (EDDC CEO Mark Williams) “lost” around 6,000 local voters before the last elections in May 2015. Coincidentally, these were exactly the kind of voters referred to below – ” …young people, private sector tenants, ethnic minorities and those from more socially deprived communities — who traditionally are less likely to vote Conservative — are most likely to be affected.”

The full text of the article:


Tens of thousands of Londoners could disappear from the electoral roll and lose their right to vote in next year’s mayoral and London Assembly elections, it was claimed today.

Ministers were accused of a “shameful abuse of power” after they brought forwards changes to the electoral registration system which critics claim could undermine the democratic outcome of key elections in the capital.

The Liberal Democrats said that up to two million voters across the country could be effectively disenfranchised with Londoners particularly at risk since the capital has such a large and transient population. Young people, private sector tenants, ethnic minorities and those from more socially deprived communities — who traditionally are less likely to vote Conservative — are most likely to be affected.

The Government, however, has insisted it is focusing on cleaning up the register which under the old system included many “ghost” voters who should no longer be included.

Lib-Dem MP Tom Brake, who has tabled a rejection motion in the House of Commons, said: “This is clearly going to lead to a very large number of people being disenfranchised and it’s very hard not to believe that there’s some political motivation behind it because the people most likely to be affected are probably not Conservative supporters.”

Lib-Dem London Assembly member Caroline Pidgeon added: “The Government is blatantly ignoring the independent electoral commission in pursuit of narrow party advantage. It is a shameful abuse of power.

“Removing nearly two million UK voters will leave gaping holes in the electoral register, especially in many parts of London. It will undermine the democratic outcome of next year’s Mayor and London Assembly elections.”

The Government brought forward the new system by a year to December 2015, even though the electoral commission advised ministers to spend another year transferring voters on the old household-based register to the new individual register.

Critics have warned that as the cleaned-up register will form the basis of the boundary review of parliamentary seats due to begin next year it will also result in fewer inner-city seats, which would favour the Conservatives.

A Cabinet Office spokesman said: “The transition to Individual Electoral Registration has been a huge success. Now we need to remove up to two million entries on the electoral registers which are inaccurate or out of date.”

In a letter to The Guardian, Cabinet Office minister John Penrose said: “It is absolutely untrue that anyone will accidentally find themselves unable to vote because of the change to individual electoral registration. Completing the transition this December will mean that all boundaries are based on the most accurate registers.”

“I’m afraid that people who oppose this will make the voting registers less accurate, and elections less fair with higher risk of fraud. People will conclude that they’re trying try to hang on to the existing system simply because it gives them an inbuilt party-political advantage, and that they’re putting this ahead of what’s right and fair.”

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/tories-accused-of-shameful-abuse-of-power-over-electoral-roll-changes-a2925551.html

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24 Aug 2015

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Electoral Commission, Transparency

Donate and get a knighthood

“A fatcat Tory was handed a knighthood six weeks after donating £160,000 to David Cameron’s election war chest.

City boss Michael Davis’s cash gift gave the party a major boost as the campaign entered its final days.

Labour MP Karl Turner said: “Once again David Cameron has questions to answer about the favours granted to his fatcat donors.

“The Tory Party is bankrolled by big money in the City, and the PM always seems to look after his own.”

The donation on April 27 has been revealed in figures released by the Electoral Commission.

On June 12 it was announced Davis, 57, was one of four Tory donors being knighted in the Queen’s birthday honours.

His donations to the party now total nearly £1.5million. He declined to comment but there is no suggestion he has done anything wrong.”

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/fatcat-tory-handed-knighthood-just-6313024

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20 Aug 2015

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Electoral Commission, Voting

Email address for Pickles investigation into electoral fraud

Where to send evidence for Pickles investigation of electoral fraud:

electoral.fraud.review@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Source: http://www.markpack.org.uk/133947/eric-pickles-hunts-for-evidence-of-electoral-fraud/

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14 Aug 2015

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East Devon Electoral/Returning Officer, EDDC, Electoral Commission, General Election, Mark Williams CEO EDDC, Transparency, Voting

Pickles article on election fraud

Sir Eric Pickles, who is launching the biggest-ever investigation into electoral fraud in Britain, warns in an article for The Daily Telegraph that the authorities are “turning a blind eye to criminal conduct”.


By Peter Dominiczak, Political Editor7:35PM BST 12 Aug 2015
Electoral fraud is being ignored in the same way that child sex abuse allegations have been because politically correct police forces and councils fear offending ethnic minorities, the Government’s anti-corruption tsar says today.
Sir Eric Pickles, who is launching the biggest-ever investigation into electoral fraud in Britain, warns in an article for The Daily Telegraph that the authorities are “turning a blind eye to criminal conduct”.
It comes after Lutfur Rahman, the mayor of Tower Hamlets in east London, was earlier this year removed from office after he was found guilty of electoral fraud.
Sir Eric compares the lack of action on allegations of electoral fraud to the scandal of local authorities and police forces ignoring claims of child sex abuse in towns across Britain.
Many of those allegations concerned Asian gangs targeting vulnerable young girls.
The law must always be “applied equally and fairly to everyone”, Sir Eric warns.
“In Tower Hamlets, police and council staff failed to tackle intimidation – often in foreign languages – both inside and outside polling stations,” Mr Pickles writes.
“Just as we have seen with child sexual exploitation in places like Rochdale and Rotherham, institutionalised political correctness can lead to the state turning a blind eye to criminal conduct. But the law must be applied equally and fairly to everyone.
“Integration and good community relations are undermined by the failure to do so.”
He adds: “The problems go deep – despite years of warnings of misconduct in Tower Hamlets, the state watchdogs gave the borough’s electoral system a gold-star rating for integrity in inspection reports. We still have a series of tick-box inspections of town hall returning officers that are as ineffectual and useless as those once practised by the now-abolished Audit Commission.”
Sir Eric, who was Communities and Local Government Secretary until David Cameron’s last reshuffle, said that the Government is “no longer prepared to turn a blind eye to Britain’s modern day rotten boroughs”.
His review will report by the end of the year and will examine what steps are necessary to stop voter registration fraud and error, postal voting fraud, impersonation, intimidation and bribery.
Sir Eric raises concerns that the London mayoral elections next year could be mired by voter fraud.
“Despite the fact there are London elections next year, a sizeable minority of those voters signed up in Tower Hamlets remain unverified and could be fakes,” he writes.
“In Hackney, the situation is even worse, with almost a quarter of the electorate unverified and potentially non-existent. We urgently need to clean up these registers. Across the country, electors from abroad are not properly checked to ensure that they qualify to vote when they register.
“Fraudulent registration is frequently tied to illegal immigration, as illegal migrants sign up to make it easier to get credit or a mobile phone. Such illegality feeds through to further crimes, such as benefit and housing fraud.”
Theresa May, the Home Secretary, earlier this year set up a major inquiry into child abuse following revelations about the crimes committed by Jimmy Savile as well as disclosures about abuse in Derby, Oxford and towns across Britain.
There were also a series of allegations about a Westminster paedophile ring.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/11799673/Eric-Pickles-Political-correct-officials-ignoring-electoral-fraud-just-like-sex-abuse.html