§ Lord Greavesasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they consider that the traditional twin safeguards against electoral fraud, of requiring an elector to vote in person and in secret, should still apply; and, if so, how they will be enforced under universal postal voting, Internet voting or text phone voting. [HL4509]
§ Lord Falconer of ThorotonWe are fully committed to ensuring that new ways of voting do not undermine citizens' ability to vote in person and in secret. Nor do we intend to deny the right to vote to those who for various reasons are unable to attend a polling station or find it more convenient to vote by other means. However, it is premature to provide details of how future arrangements might work. To reach that point, we will require further pilot schemes and evaluation, supported by research. We will only proceed with voting methods that are proven to work satisfactorily and that maintain the integrity of the ballot.
§ Lord Greavesasked Her Majesty's Government:
In announcing that the Electoral Commission's evaluation exercise into the 30 electoral pilots which took place on 2 May will look at whether or not the pilots "maintain or increase the level of security at elections", what they mean by "security at elections". [HL4512]
§ Lord Falconer of ThorotonBy "security at elections" we mean that new methods of voting should maintain the integrity and secrecy of the ballot and provide safeguards against those who may attempt to commit electoral fraud.