§ Mr. WyattTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what steps are taken to ensure that only bona fide constituents are registered on the electoral roll. [148735]
§ Mr. LeslieApplications for registration are made to individual Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), appointed by local authorities, who are responsible for compiling the electoral register as accurately as possible. The annual canvass form which is sent to all households provides information about who is eligible to register. An ERO may require a person applying to register to give additional information if they are in doubt as to whether that person is eligible to be registered. It is an offence under the Representation of the People Act 1983 to fail to comply with a request for information from an ERO, or to provide false or inaccurate information to a registration officer. The electoral register is available for public inspection which enables checks to be made that only eligible electors are on the register.