ELECTORAL REGISTERS BILL (Hansard, 14 December 1953)

THE JOINT PARLIAMENTARY UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT (LORD LLOYD)
My Lords, I do not think I need detain your Lordships very long with this Bill because it is an agreed measure, the object of which is to alter the date of publication of the register of electors from March 15 to February 15 from 1955 onwards. Those concerned with elections, and particularly with county council elections in England, which, as your Lordships are aware, are held early in April, have wished for the register to be published earlier ever since the present arrangements were made in the Representation of the People Act, 1948. It was not, however, at that time found possible, owing to printing difficulties, to provide for the register to be published before the middle of March.
The printing situation has now changed, and we now find that it would be practicable to publish the register in February. We thought this opportunity to make a change should be taken, and we have found that everyone concerned, including the chief Party agents, representative registration officers, the County Councils Association and the London County Council, welcome it. The Bill had a speedy and unopposed passage in another place. As it is most desirable to enable the printers and registration officers and others concerned to make the necessary adjustments in their arrangements for preparing the 1955 register as soon as possible, I trust that your Lordships will also be willing to give the Bill a speedy passage. I beg to move that the Bill be now read a second time.

§ THE EARL OF LUCAN
My Lords, we on this side of the House welcome this Bill wholeheartedly. We are glad to learn that it is an agreed measure, agreed not only in Parliament but by all those concerned with elections outside. Your Lordships may think that we are not concerned, but I would remind your Lordships that we have votes in the local elections. I should like to put two points to the noble Lord, Lord Lloyd. In this country we are exceedingly proud of our electoral system and of the methods by which we conduct elections, and I think we are all anxious that the system we employ shall be as fair as possible and shall ensure as far as possible that all those entitled to vote have an opportunity to do so. Arising out of the change in the qualifying dates and dates of publication of the register, there is a point concerning the canvass of all householders which has to be carried out by the registration officers before the qualifying date. Since the qualifying date has been brought forward to October 10, and several weeks are required for this canvass, it means that canvassing will start in the heart of the holiday season, in early September, or some period like that. I would suggest that the Minister should urge on all registration officers that this change of date requires even more effort on their part and on the part of those they employ to ensure that everybody qualified is contacted. No doubt it will mean slightly more expense. It may mean repeated canvassing in certain areas, but we should like registration officers and those they employ to be inspired by the diligence and pertinacity of tax collectors.
My second point concerns the period for claims and objections, which up to now has been in January, and which will be in December under the new arrangement of the dates. The period is of fifteen days and will end just before Christmas. Any noble Lord who has had anything to do with elections knows that nomination day is the signal for a whole flood of voters to come complaining that they are not on the register and therefore have lost their votes. In other words, they had omitted to notice the period in which they could claim. They are aggrieved, and many of them lose their rights as citizens. I hope that the Minister will consider the maximum possible publicity during the period for 13 claims. I know that notices are exhibited in post offices, schools and elsewhere, but human nature is frail, and in any case in the period before Christmas there are many other preoccupations. If measures could be taken to increase the amount of publicity in the Press and on the radio, I am sure that, as a result, more citizens would obtain their votes.

LORD LLOYD
My Lords, by leave of the House, I will reply briefly to what the noble Earl has said. The question of the qualifying dates was raised in another place and the noble Earl will probably have seen that my right honourable friend then gave the assurance that before making any order under the Bill there will be further consultation on that point. I will certainly draw my right honourable friend's attention to what the noble Earl has said. With regard to the noble Earl's point about the difficulty caused by holidays, again I agree entirely with what he has said, and I will mention it to my right honourable friend. The noble Earl will have noticed that there are four more days under the new dispensation and I think he will agree that that is an improvement. But I agree with the force of what he has said, and anything we can do to improve matters in the way he suggested will certainly be done.