HC Deb 02 February 1998 vol 305 cc711-2
11. Mr. Barnes

If he will make a statement on the advantages and disadvantages of a system of rolling electoral registration. [24622]

Mr. George Howarth

My hon. Friend will be aware that I am chairing a working party that is examining rolling registers and other electoral issues.

Mr. Barnes

Are not the current static electoral registers out of date as soon as they come into use? Masses of people are missing from the registers, and many people who have moved or died are still included. We need a much more modern system. According to the figures showing the eligible population in England, 4.7 per cent. of people are missing from the electoral register, and in Richmondshire, the local government area represented by the right hon. Member for Richmond, Yorks (Mr. Hague), 15.8 per cent. of people are missing. Perhaps some politicians turn people off more than others. We need a modern, up-to-date, electoral registration system that is compatible with a mobile society.

Mr. Howarth

I pay tribute to my hon. Friend's work on this subject over a number of years. He has raised concerns about the absence of people on the register due to the poll tax and for other reasons. The specific points that he has raised will be examined by the working party, which met for the first time a couple of weeks ago and includes representatives from the Liberal Democrats and the Conservative party. We are aware of the problems, and that we need to modernise our electoral registration system and the conduct of elections. I hope that we shall come up with a set of conclusions and recommendations that will resolve the problems that my hon. Friend describes.

Mr. Collins

Does the Minister recognise that a rolling registration process runs the risk of an increase in honest and dishonest mistakes due to multiple entries? Will he undertake not to support any mechanism that could increase the risk of electoral fraud?

Mr. Howarth

The integrity of our electoral system is of paramount importance to all of us, and I would not be party to any decision that undermined that. There would have to be a cut-off point at some realistic date so as to preserve the integrity of the system. Provided that we take those pointers into account, it should be possible to have a rolling register with a cut-off point before it comes into effect for any particular election.

Mr. Rammell

Does my hon. Friend agree that, given that the turnout, especially for local government and European elections, is significantly lower in this country than in other European countries, we should actively explore other radical new initiatives, such as electronic voting, voting in a wider variety of places, including supermarkets, and voting on a Sunday, which is considered on the continent to be the best way in which to maximise turnout because people do not have so many alternatives?

Mr. Howarth

My hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government and Housing has established a working party that is considering the re-invigoration of local elections, and issues such as electronic voting form part of its considerations.

It is important to increase turnout in local elections because that in itself increases the authority and accountability of local government. My working party will also take those issues into account. While I would not rule out Sunday voting for all time, there are one or two changes in the pipeline already and it might be a little confusing to introduce too many changes at one go. For example, I do not suspect that Sunday voting would be a sensible option for the next round of European elections.