§ Any person may object to the registration of any person whose name appears on the electors' lists for the constituency whose name is included in the electors' list by sending notice of objection in the prescribed form to the registration officer 2281 not later than the fifteenth day of February in the case of the spring register and the fifteenth day of August in the case of the autumn register, and may object to the registration of any person whose name is included in the list of claimants by sending notice of objection in the prescribed form to the registration officer not later than the seventh day of March in the case of the spring register and the fourth day of September in the case of the autumn register.
§ Amendments made: After the word "person" ["any person may object"], insert the words "whose name appears on the electors' lists for a constituency or local government electoral area."
§ Leave out the words "whose name appears on the electors' lists for the constituency."
§ Leave out the word "list" ["in the electors' list"], and insert instead thereof the words "lists for the constituency or the local government electoral area, as the case may be."—[Sir G. Cave.]
§ Sir G. CAVEI beg to move, after Rule 12, to insert,
13. It shall be the duty of the registration officer to publish a list of the names of persons to whose registration notice of objection has been given as soon as practicable after the seventh day of March in the case of the spring register and the fourth day of September in the case of the autumn register.
§ Sir G. YOUNGERI want to ask the Home Secretary a question about this Amendment. I had an Amendment on the Paper yesterday to alter these dates from the 21st day of February and the 21st clay of August. The difficulty in the matter, which was pointed out to me by the experts, is that the dates of the 7th March and the 4th September are regarded as too late a period to enable these objections to be satisfactorily dealt with before the revision of the roll can take place. What I want to point out is that we are altering these dates and muddling about, so that it is very difficult to follow where we are. I am mystified to know how these dates fit in, and what the timetable really is, but I shall be satisfied if the right hon. Gentleman will be good enough to say that he will take care to see that these dates are carefully looked into in case some alteration is required. The whole House last night agreed that there ought to be a reasonable time allowed and it is not a reasonable time if 2282 there are only three days. If that is so, I am sure the Home Secretary will promise the House that he will consider the matter and, if necessary, in another place make a slight change in the date.
§ Colonel GRETTONSurely there ought to be some more definite instruction given to the registration officer as to the publication of the lists than is contained in the Home Secretary's proposed words "as soon as practicable." They are too vague. The time which you are allowing is so short, even when the table is adjusted as has been suggested, in which to revise the long lists which will be entailed by the great number of voters now to be added to the lists of electors, that there ought to be some definite instruction that these lists should be published by some definite date and not later than that. These words, in the opinion of many people, give too much discretion to the registration officer and leave too much to accident.
§ Mr. FIELDI think anyone with any experience of registration work will admit the objections raised by the hon. and gallant Member (Colonel Gretton). There is not a sufficiently reasonable time allowed in order that these lists may be examined, particularly in view of the fact that we may expect an enormous increase in the number. We, therefore, want more time than has hitherto been given; and, if my argument is correct, instead of more time we have less. In addition, the greatest publicity ought to be given to the dates, so that everything may work harmoniously, and opportunity be given to the voter to be put on the list.
§ Sir G. CAVEWith regard to the date suggested by the hon. Baronet (Sir G. Younger), I think he will see that the last date for the objection to claims is the 7th March, and that the provision is that these shall be published as soon as possible after the 7th March. I will gladly give the assurance for which he asks, that we will look into the whole time-table; but I rather demur to the statement that we are muddling about. One change has been very reluctantly made at the most urgent request of hon. Members, including, I think, the hon. Baronet himself, and if there was any kind of confusion it was not in our minds, but in the minds of other people. With regard to the observations of the hon. and gallant Member (Colonel Gretton), I think that if you limit the time there is a tendency not to do the work until that time is about to expire. We 2283 want to enjoin the officer to act quickly and as soon as he can. I think the words referred to are elsewhere in the Bill, and that they should be kept here. I think I have answered the remarks of the hon. Gentleman the Member for St. Patrick's (Mr. Field) in saying that we will look into the time-table.
§ Proposed words there inserted in the Bill.