HC Deb 03 August 1944 vol 402 cc1594-6
35. Sir R. Acland

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, approximately, the relation between the number of election registration forms received by the Central Registrars Department from the three Fighting Services, and the number of men and women eligible to register in these three Services.

Mr. H. Morrison

I shall be glad, at a later date, to consider how far information can be given on this point, but at present the number of counterparts received by the Central National Registration Office does not show how many Service declarations have reached electoral registration officers, since many such officers have not yet been able to carry through the work required to be done before the counterparts can be completed and transmitted to the Central Office. This work is less urgent than other electoral registration work, because delay in transmitting the counterpart does not affect the Service voter's right to be placed on the electoral register. That right is assured as soon as a valid declaration reaches the electoral registration officer.

Sir R. Acland

Will the right hon. Gentleman try to be in a position to give a more definite answer to the Question when we meet again, after the brief Recess?

Mr. Morrison

I am not at all sure. It is a choice between setting labour to work in collecting statistics, and letting the same labour get on with the job. That is the dilemma I am in.

Sir R. Acland

Will the right hon. Gentleman ask the 600 separate registration officers how many they have received, because this is the only way of getting a global figure of the whole thing? The Service Ministers will not tell us.

Mr. Morrison

The hon. Member must not use me to get round the Service Ministers, by outflanking them. I will consider the point, but I think it would not be possible at this stage, anyway.

36. Mr. Hugh Lawson

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of electoral registration forms received by registration officers from the Forces are incorrectly filled in and result in the applicant not having his or her name placed on the register; and what steps are taken to inform the applicant that the application is invalid.

Mr. H. Morrison

Defective declarations are returned through the appropriate channels with an indication of the defect for the purpose of giving the person who made the declaration an opportunity to make a new one. I am not at this stage in a position to give figures, but I understand that a proportion of the declarations received have been found to be defective, and that the Army Council are in the course of issuing a supplementary instruction calling attention to those defects which are more frequently found.

Mr. Lawson

Does the same thing apply to defective proxies? The registration may be all right, but the proxy might be defective. Are these sent back also?

Mr. Morrison

Now my hon. Friend is drawing me into a sphere which is the responsibility of a Service Minister. The hon. Member's question to me is perfectly proper, but it is on another subject. I cannot answer for each Service Minister's administration.

37. Mr. Hugh Lawson

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many members of the Forces have now been registered as Parliamentary electors as a result of the distribution of forms to the Services; and if he is satisfied that the present staff of electoral registration officers is adequate to deal with these forms as soon as they are received and to keep records of the numbers of those registering.

Mr. H. Morrison

In my reply of 8th June to a similar Question by my hon. Friend the Member for the City of Oxford (Mr. Hogg) I explained the reason for not calling on electoral registration officers to make special returns giving these figures at the present time. As soon as a valid declaration is received by the electoral registration officer the Service voter becomes qualified to be placed on the electoral register, and I have no reason to doubt that despite staffing difficulties the electoral registration officers will keep the records in such a state that whenever an election is initiated a register of the Service voters entitled to vote in the constituency can be produced.

Mr. Lipson

When the right hon. Gentleman has these figures, if he finds they are not very satisfactory, will he consider the question of automatic registration?

Mr. Morrison

I had better not say anything about that at present.

42. Mr. Mander

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the new electoral register will be available for use.

Mr. H. Morrison

I hope that it may be possible to operate the new electoral arrangements from 1st October, or shortly thereafter, but in present conditions I cannot be certain.

Mr. Mander

Can the right hon. Gentleman say whether it is intended that pending by-elections shall be held on the new register?

Mr. Morrison

I doubt whether they can; it depends on when the Writ is moved.