Official Report 508KB pdf
Representation of the People (Postal Voting for Local Government Elections) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2026 [Draft]
Scottish Local Government Elections (Election Agents, Expenses and Publication of Information) Amendment Order 2026 [Draft]
09:15
Item 2 is an evidence session with the Minister for Parliamentary Business and Veterans on two Scottish statutory instruments. The minister is joined by Scottish Government officials Iain Hockenhull, who is head of the elections team, and Lorraine Walkinshaw, who is a lawyer in the legal directorate. I welcome all the witnesses to the committee.
The instruments are laid under the affirmative procedure, which means that they cannot come into force unless the Parliament approves them. Following the evidence session, the committee will be invited to consider two motions to recommend that the instruments be approved. I remind everyone that the Scottish Government officials can speak under item 2, but not in the debate that follows. Under a later item, we will consider two instruments subject to the negative procedure that the Scottish Government considers part of a package with these two instruments, and which therefore might also be relevant to this evidence session.
Before any questions from us, I invite the minister to make a short opening statement.
I will keep it very short, convener. Thank you for inviting me to speak about the instruments, which will modify election rules ahead of next May’s local government elections. This is my first appearance before the committee in this parliamentary session, and I very much look forward to working with the committee in the period ahead.
Ahead of any set of elections, it is not unusual for the Scottish Government to introduce regulations of this nature to revise the law as it impacts the elections that are immediately before us. These instruments—the two affirmative and two negative instruments that are before the committee today, as the convener mentioned, and another negative instrument in due course—seek to make improvements to electoral law ahead of next May’s elections. Several changes echo those that were made for Scottish Parliament elections in secondary legislation last year, so to a degree we are trying to ensure that the changes that we make read across all our electoral law. Other changes will make technical adjustments that are designed to ensure the smooth running of the election, and others have been requested by stakeholders.
Along with Iain Hockenhull and Lorraine Walkinshaw, I look forward to discussing the instruments with the committee, and I am happy to answer any questions that the committee might have.
Thank you.
Good morning, minister. How are you doing? I have only one question, which is about the change from 10 pm to 5 pm in relation to spoiled or lost ballot papers. Our meeting papers just say that the change reflects the fact that few, if any, replacement ballot packs are requested between 5 pm and 10 pm. Do we have any figures on that?
I do not have a comprehensive set of figures for you at the moment. We have asked the Electoral Management Board for Scotland for the figures. It varies between none being requested in some local authority areas and one or two in other areas, so we are talking about a very small number. I understand that, intuitively, it might look as though we are restricting things a little, but, primarily, the reason for the change is administrative. If you run right up to 10 pm, it does not give much time for people to go through the process of preparing replacement ballot papers, which is a logistical challenge.
The other point, as I said, is to try to have consistency across all elections, so that, if a voter has gone through the process in one election, they understand that the process is the same in others. It replicates what we put in place for the Scottish Parliament election last year, and it is also the practice at United Kingdom Parliament elections.
What would happen in a situation where a voter had a problem after the 5 pm deadline? Would that mean that they were unable to vote?
Under the changes, I suppose that in effect that is correct. However, as I say, it is a very rare circumstance. The fundamental point is that this is about ensuring that there is good communication early on so that people understand that 5 pm is the deadline by which they should come forward to seek a replacement ballot paper. Incidentally, I am happy to write to the committee with the specific details that we have been able to gather from the Electoral Management Board and electoral registration officers. We are talking about a very limited number of people.
As there are no further questions for the minister on the affirmative instruments, I turn to the negative instruments. As you will be aware, we will take evidence later on the Scottish Local Government Elections (Candidacy Rights of Commonwealth Citizens) Bill, and I am interested to understand whether the provisions of the negative instruments incorporate or are wide enough to accept any changes that might come if the bill is passed?
If I can be candid with you, the reason why we need that primary legislation is that I am not able to make the alterations through secondary legislation. The negative instruments stand alone in trying to make the requisite changes so that the law is consistent with what I think the Parliament sought to legislate for last year. However, they stand together in the sense that they are a coherent package of changes through which we seek to update and modernise electoral law.
That is helpful. I think that the questions from committee members have covered the documentation that will be required by individuals to have an emergency proxy vote in the circumstances that are set out in the instrument. You alluded to the fact that there will be a third negative instrument. Are you satisfied that the drafting errors have all been corrected?
I am. I obviously regret that there was a drafting error in one of the negative instruments, but that speaks to the purpose of parliamentary scrutiny. The Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee spotted the error, and we have adjusted it accordingly.
Great. As there are no further questions, we move to item 3, which is consideration of motions S7M-01085 and S7M-01086. The committee will take each motion in turn, so, first, I invite the minister to speak to and move motion S7M-01085.
The only thing that I would like to say, convener, is that I apologise for the length of the names of the instruments.
Motion moved,
That the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee recommends that the Representation of the People (Postal Voting for Local Government Elections) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2026 [draft] be approved.—[Jamie Hepburn]
I thank you for the apology—they are tongue twisters. As there is no indication that members wish to debate the motion, I invite the minister to sum up, if he wishes.
Thank you for the debate that we have had on the instrument. I have nothing to add.
Motion agreed to.
I invite the minister to speak to and move motion S7M-01086.
Motion moved,
That the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee recommends that the Scottish Local Government Elections (Election Agents, Expenses and Publication of Information) Amendment Order 2026 [draft] be approved.—[Jamie Hepburn]
Motion agreed to.
The clerks will draft a report on the committee’s considerations of the two instruments. I invite the committee to delegate authority to me, as convener, to sign off the report for publication. Do members agree?
Members indicated agreement.
I thank the minister and his officials for attending. I will briefly pause to allow you to leave the room. I note that we are still live and broadcasting.
Representation of the People (Absent Voting at Local Government Elections) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2026 (SSI 2026/251)
Scottish Local Government Elections Amendment Order 2026 (SSI 2026/254)
Item 4 is consideration of two negative instruments. No motion to annul has been laid for either instrument. As members have no comments to make on the instruments, I invite the committee to agree that it does not wish to make any recommendations in relation to the instruments.
Members indicated agreement.
I suspend the meeting to allow for a changeover of witnesses.
09:26
Meeting suspended.
09:31
On resuming—