HC Deb 14 July 1983 vol 45 cc997-1000
4. Mr. Neil Hamilton

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to complete his consideration of the report of the Home Affairs Committee on the Representation of the People Acts.

5. Mr. Beith

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to complete his consideration of the report of the Home Affairs Committee on the Representation of the People Acts.

6. Mr. Kirkwood

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when Her Majesty's Government expect to have concluded their consideration of the recommendations of the Home Affairs Committee report on the Representation of the People Acts.

9. Mr. John Hunt

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to complete his consideration of the report of the Home Affairs Committee on the Representation of the People Acts.

Mr. Brittan

Shortly, Sir.

Mr. Hamilton

Is my right hon. and learned Friend aware of the sense of injustice felt by many people who were deprived of the right to vote at the general election campaign because they were on holiday? Is he further aware that there is a difference between elections for local government or the European assembly, the dates of which are known in advance, and general elections, the dates of which are not known in advance? Is he aware also that for the latter people are not able to make appropriate arrangements? Will he introduce legislation as soon as possible to implement the change recommended in the report?

Mr. Brittan

I am not simply aware of the concern, I share it to the full. It is helpful of my hon. Friend to point out the practical implications of doing something about different types of elections. Changing the timetable for a general election would raise wide issues. The problems of change are not insuperable, but they are considerable, for fixed elections. Nevertheless, I share my hon. Friend's anxiety.

Several Hon. Members

rose—

Mr. Speaker

Order. I propose to call first those hon. Members whose questions are linked.

Mr. Beith

When considering the Committee's proposals on deposits, will the Minister bear in mind that parties that are less comfortably financed than the Conservatives would have a major problem in laying out more than £500,000 to fight an election if that proposal were implemented? Will he stand by the previous Government's assurance that such legislation being passed will depend on all-party agreement?

Mr. Brittan

I am sure that the House will want to know that the hon. Gentleman speaks with a spirit of altruism, because the Liberal-SDP alliance lost 19 deposits whereas the Labour party lost 119. The objective of any change would be to reflect changed circumstances since 1918, when the deposit was fixed at £150. It would not be intended to jeopardise the legitimate operations of democracy.

Mr. Kirkwood

Is the Home Secretary aware that the report shows that inaccuracy in the register from 1951 to 1961 increased by 9 per cent.? Is he worried about that? If so, what does he propose to do about it? Does he agree that it is interesting that we should be considering the detailed mechanics of electoral law which disfranchises about 9 per cent. of the population, when the first-past-the-post system disfranchises far more?

Mr. Brittan

When the electorate had the opportunity to vote for parties that advocate proportional representation, 70 per cent. chose not to. We can do something about the accuracy of the register in advance of legislation, because much can be done by administrative means. We held a seminar with some registration officers to discuss some aspects of this issue. We shall hold more meetings with other registration officers and review the design of some of the electoral forms. Those are the practical steps that can be taken in any event.

Mr. Hunt

My right hon. and learned Friend has told us when he will reply to the Select Committee's report. Will he be a little more specific about when he will act on its recommendations, especially in respect of votes for holidaymakers? Does he appreciate that that matter is urgent and that there is strong feeling in the country about it? Does he further agree that we cannot let the matter drift for much longer?

Mr. Brittan

I assure my hon. Friend that it will not drift. Equally, he will understand that it is not for me to announce the legislative intentions of the Government, still less their timing. I hope that by what I said during the debate on the Queen's Speech and by what I have said today I have communicated my anxiety about the matter and my belief that action is necessary.

Mr. J. Enoch Powell

Are these not matters which, not being wholly neutral politically, ought to be considered by a conference under your chairmanship, Mr. Speaker, before there is any consideration of a change in the law?

Mr. Brittan

Experience of these matters shows that the best advice was given by Mr. Speaker Selwyn Lloyd, who did not commend such a practice to the House. The new Select Committees and their reports are a new development. I do not believe that the course that the right hon. Gentleman commends is necessarily the most appropriate.

Mr. McCrindle

While we await legislative proposals on votes for holidaymakers, would it not be useful for the Home Secretary to explain now what has been considered the essential difference between being on business in Birmingham, which has entitled me to a vote, and being on vacation in Ventnor, which has not?

Mr. Brittan

I have been unable to find a rational distinction between the two. The only basis is that it is thought possible to prove the one and not the other. The law is founded on that. That is not a satisfactory distinction or a satisfactory basis for such discrimination.

Mr. Dubs

Is the Home Secretary aware that what he said about examining inaccuracies in electoral registers at the recent general election is most welcome? Is he further aware that many hon. Members, on both sides of the House, have complained about what they learnt of the electoral registers in their constituencies? Will he keep the House informed of any progress that he makes in improving the quality of the registers?

Mr. Brittan

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. I shall do what I can to keep the House informed. Many of the issues are technical and involve minor administrative matters, but collectively and cumulatively they will, I hope, lead to welcome improvements in the registers.

Mr. Lennox-Boyd

Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that any changes in our electoral system that led to the permanent domination of the: Government by a minority party would be undemocratic?

Mr. Brittan

Yes.

Mr. Adley

Will my right hon. and learned Friend fly in the face of the precedents set by all Home Secretaries and actually do something? Will he say now that he accepts that the pressure for postal votes is so strong, and the justification for them so clear, that he will do everything he can to persuade those who are responsible for Government business to act, and that he will not wait for the entire report to be accepted because he accepts the urgency and the wholly exceptional nature of the problem and will do something about it?

Mr. Brittan

I have made my views on those matters clear. I do not necessarily accept that this aspect of the matter should be dealt with on its own. The Select Committee report made three principal recommendations, and I should not wish it to be thought that I regard the other two as less important.