Subordinate Legislation Committee, 13 Jun 2006

Meeting date: Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Official Report 179KB pdf

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Delegated Powers Scrutiny

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Local Electoral Administration and Registration Services (Scotland) Bill: as amended at Stage 2

We do not have a huge amount of time to deal with this item. We can write to the Executive today and consider a response from the Executive next week; the stage 3 debate will be held next Thursday. As always, we are squeezed away from any proper process at all.

On section 6, "Access to electoral documents: supplementary", we reported our concern to the lead committee at stage 1 about the drafting of section 6(10). The Executive has amended the section as suggested by the committee and has provided for a free-standing order-making power rather than seeking to extend an existing power in another enactment. That means that orders that are made under section 6(10) will be subject to open procedure. I take it that the committee simply notes that change.

Members indicated agreement.

Section 18A, "Absent vote applications: provision of personal identifiers", and sections 18B to 18D introduce the collection and use of personal identifiers for absent voting only at local government elections in Scotland. They reflect changes that were made to the United Kingdom Electoral Administration Bill and ensure that those anti-fraud measures will also apply to local government elections in Scotland. It is assumed that annulment will provide adequate scrutiny.

Members indicated agreement.

In section 18B, "Provision of fresh signatures", subsection (3) gives ministers powers to make regulations that allow registration officers to require electors who vote by post or proxy to provide a fresh signature in certain circumstances. There is a lack of information about the intended exercise of that power, and there are concerns about the meaning and scope of "consequences" in section 18B(3)(b). Would it be worth our asking the Executive to clarify its thinking in relation to the power and, in particular, what is meant by "consequences"?

Perhaps there is a penalty involved, but we do not know. The bill seems to suggest that there might be.

Okay.

Section 18C provides for the disclosure of personal identifiers that are kept by registration officers. The power could be quite wide and involve the disclosure of personal information, yet it is subject only to the negative procedure. No explanation is given for the power to prescribe the "purposes" for which the information is disclosed. We might want to ask for further information on the intended exercise of the power and, in particular, what "purposes" the Executive has in mind. I think that it would be worth asking that, to see what is meant.

The Executive has said that the power is limited to electoral purposes, but it has refused to put that in the bill, although that would have cleared the matter up entirely. Given the concern that exists, it would be helpful if the Executive could clear up any doubts in correspondence to the committee.

I think that our earlier discussion will make us even more nervous about allowing things not to be specified on the face of the bill.

In section 18D, "Power to require existing absent voters to provide personal identifiers", ministers are given a power to make regulations to enable registration officers to require existing absent voters to provide a signature and date of birth. That is pretty much the same as the situation that we considered earlier and we should ask the Executive to clarify its thinking in relation to this power and what is meant by "consequences" in the context of the power.

Section 19A concerns the piloting of the idea of having photographs on ballot papers. Stewart Maxwell immediately shakes his head, but my graciousness prevents me from asking why. The provision extends an existing delegated power and mirrors a power that was in section 19, which we were content with at stage 1.

Are we content with the power and with the fact that it is not subject to parliamentary procedure, except where the pilot is extended by order to the whole country, in which case it would be subject to affirmative procedure? In other words, are we happy for the Executive to conduct the pilot on a test basis, regardless of whether we like the policy, which is a different question?

Members indicated agreement.

Are we content with section 19B, "Encouraging electoral participation", which gives returning officers powers to encourage participation at local government elections?

Members indicated agreement.

In section 34, "Indexing of registers and the provision of registration information", a new subsection has been inserted, which is intended to provide authority for a district registrar to issue, on payment of the prescribed fee, an extract of an entry in the registers. The fee is prescribed in regulations. Are we content that the power be subject to negative procedure?

Members indicated agreement.

On section 47, "Keeping of central register for health and local authority purposes", the committee was content with the power as originally drafted. The amendment extends the power to allow a "class of person" as well as "such persons" to be prescribed in regulations made by the Registrar General. That seems to be only an administrative change to what we agreed already. Are members content with the power and that it be subject to negative procedure?

Members indicated agreement.

Under section 2A, "Provision of information about expenditure on elections", ministers may issue directions to returning officers to provide them with such information about expenditure on elections as the directions may specify. The directions that are issued under the provision are entirely administrative in nature. Are we content with the provision?

Members indicated agreement.