Local Government and Communities Committee

Meeting date: Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Official Report 544KB pdf

---

Subordinate Legislation

---

Representation of the People (Scotland) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 [Draft]

Agenda item 2 is subordinate legislation. The committee will take evidence on a draft affirmative Scottish statutory instrument. I welcome Joe FitzPatrick, Minister for Parliamentary Business, who is accompanied by the Scottish Government officials Roddy Angus, elections policy adviser, and Rebecca Whyte, elections team leader.

The instrument was laid under the affirmative procedure, which means that the Parliament must approve it before the provisions can come into force. Following this evidence session, the committee will be invited under the next agenda item to consider a motion to recommend approval of the instrument.

I invite the minister to make a short opening statement.

Good morning, and thank you for the opportunity to set out the Government’s position on the regulations. Their main purpose is to make registering to vote anonymously at devolved elections in Scotland easier. The regulations will also strengthen the integrity of the electoral register and improve the registration system for electors.

As you know, although the Scottish Parliament now has responsibility for local and Scottish Parliament elections, the UK Government remains responsible for UK Parliament elections in Scotland. That means that electoral registration in Scotland is a shared responsibility. Due to that joint responsibility, similar changes are also being proposed for UK parliamentary elections in Scotland. In fact, I understand that the UK Government’s regulations will be debated in the House of Commons this afternoon.

Anonymous registration was first introduced in 2006 and is designed to protect those whose safety would be at risk if their name or address appeared on the electoral register. When applying, an applicant must provide evidence that demonstrates that their safety would be at risk. The evidence that can be accepted, which is set out in legislation, is a live court order, an injunction or interdict from a prescribed list or a signed statement certifying that the applicant’s safety is at risk, which is known as an attestation. An attestation can be made only by members of the professions that are listed in the legislation as qualifying officers. Those include a police superintendent or a director of social services. The regulations that are before the committee propose to expand the list of those who can attest applications.

The regulations also add additional court orders that can be used as evidence to support an application. The two orders that are being added—domestic violence protection orders and female genital mutilation orders—are not orders that are issued by Scottish courts, but they are included so that they can still be used to support an anonymous registration application if someone subsequently moves to Scotland. Similar domestic abuse interdicts under Scottish legislation were added to the list of relevant court orders by the Representation of the People (Scotland) (Description of Electoral Registers and Amendment) Regulations 2013.

Further changes are likely to be brought forward as we implement the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Bill, which was passed last week, and in the light of our on-going consultation and the detailed policy paper on anonymous electoral registration. On that point, I urge anyone with an interest in anonymous voting to share their knowledge with us to help shape future changes. The consultation on electoral reform, which closes on 12 March, and the detailed paper on anonymous electoral registration can be accessed on the Government’s website, at www.gov.scot.

The other changes that the regulations make aim to improve the electoral registration process for voters and make it easier and more effective for electoral registration officers to administer. The changes add statements to the registration application form to alert the applicant that they may have to provide evidence of their nationality and that a failure to provide a previous address may delay their application. In addition, we propose to allow registration officers to use information from additional sources to support a decision to remove a deceased elector from the electoral register. That will reduce the need for a registration officer to contact a deceased elector’s relatives and will help to avoid unnecessary distress to relatives.

The final proposed changes streamline and simplify the correspondence that electoral registration officers are required to send to electors. The changes are designed to reduce the cost of the registration system and provide greater discretion to electoral registration officers to tailor their approach based on the needs of electors.

I hope that the committee will agree that the regulations will make it easier to register anonymously and will improve the registration process for the public and administrators. I hope that that is a useful summary. I am happy to answer any questions.

Thank you. Given that the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Bill was passed last week and that we had a debate yesterday afternoon on the centenary of some women in society getting the franchise and the struggles around that, the timing of the instrument is not lost on the committee—it is certainly timely and important.

I have some housekeeping announcements before we move to questions. For anybody who may be watching this and who is not used to parliamentary processes, this agenda item—item 2—is a question and answer session, which officials can take part in. There is a formal debate at agenda item 3 but, in my experience, these things tend to blend into one. I just point that out for anyone who is watching, so that they understand our processes.

Are there any questions for the minister and his team?

What prompted the changes? Where did the idea for making the changes come from?

We already planned to introduce changes around anonymous registration through our consultation, which is on-going, and there is a detailed paper on that. Prior to our having the powers, the UK Government consulted on making these particular changes. Given that registration is a shared responsibility, I felt that it was important that we make the changes now. That is not to say that we will not make further changes. Indeed, that is very likely, which is why we have a continuing consultation, but if we did not make these changes now, someone would potentially have to register separately to be on the anonymous register for Scottish and local government elections and the Westminster elections. It is about doing what is best for the voter.

I presume that the UK Government is supportive of the measures. Has it raised any concerns from a UK parliamentary elections point of view?

No. It is a shared agenda. I will go back to my colleagues in the UK Government and other Administrations across the UK if there are ideas that come out of our consultation, because clearly it would be better for anyone who needs to be anonymously registered to have one anonymous registration that covers all elections in Scotland. If we want to make further changes here, our approach will be to try to ensure that they are replicated by the UK Parliament so that those who are anonymously registered in Scotland are covered for the Westminster Parliament elections as well.

That would be for any changes to the qualifications following your consultation, but does the UK Government have any problems with the current measures? I think that it had only 12 responses to its consultation.

That is probably because they are pragmatic and sensible things to do. There is pretty well universal agreement, so we are working together on the issue.

How will the Government work with the Electoral Commission to ensure that people are aware of their rights? I am thinking particularly of survivors of gender-based violence and about the role of Women’s Aid and other refuges. How will people get the right information? We heard in the previous evidence session that people’s awareness of their rights is often a barrier.

That is a really good point, which is why I encourage anyone who has knowledge of these matters to get involved in the consultation and specifically the detailed policy paper on anonymous registration, because we want to hear what more we can do. People having the right to do something is one thing, but it is equally important that they know that they have that right. We will work not just with the Electoral Commission but with groups such as Women’s Aid.

I have a question about general practitioners’ charges. I assume that only a minority of GPs will charge for their services, but the charge would be in the range of £30 to £63. Is there a way to stop that?

The number of GPs who are likely to be asked is slim. I would hope that a GP with knowledge of the individual would realise that it was not appropriate to charge them.

Is there a way for us to ensure that GPs do not do that, because it just does not seem right?

I think that the only way that it could be done would be as part of the GP contract. We will need to monitor the issue. It just does not feel right, which I guess is why you are asking the question, and I would hope that most GPs would have the same view.

In relation to the relevant professional or officer who can give the attestation that a person is at risk, more local police officers will be able to do that. Some people report domestic violence and abuse to the police but then, for whatever reason, such as vulnerabilities, the case is never progressed to prosecution and conviction. Am I correct in thinking that that information and intelligence that police officers have can be used to complete the form without a court conviction having been secured?

Yes—that is true. I ask Roddy Angus to go into a bit more detail on that.

Even if the police have not convicted but they have circumstantial evidence that points towards somebody being at risk of abuse, they can sign an attestation. If the police feel that it is best for the individual to have their identity and location kept secret because they are at risk of abuse, they can sign the attestation. There does not have to be a court conviction to enable them to do that.

It is important to ensure that everyone understands that message. I know from individual casework in my constituency that it is really important for people to know that. I suspected that that would be the answer, but I just wanted to get that on the record.

Is the granting of anonymity so that the address does not feature on the register for one election only or for all elections? Is it for one year or five years? How is that issue managed?

At the moment, people have to apply only once to be put on the anonymous register for the UK Parliament and local government elections. The reason why we are making the changes in the Scottish Parliament while our colleagues down south are doing that in the UK Parliament is to keep that the same. Otherwise, people would have to apply twice and there would be different rules.

At the moment, an anonymous application lasts for only one year and people have to reapply annually. The reason for that is that someone can remain anonymous only as long as there is a risk to them of abuse. If that risk has diminished and is no longer relevant, their name and address go back on the register. If an individual feels at risk, they could carry that on either through the attestation route or court orders, if they thought that that was necessary.

I want to explore that a little bit further. Just hypothecating, if a vulnerable individual in really challenging circumstances wishes to exercise the right to vote and gets that attestation, which lasts for one year, will they be pre-warned by an official that their name will go public again? That could traumatise an individual.

That is not the way that it happens.

My understanding is that, before the year runs out, they get a letter from the electoral registration officer warning them that their anonymous registration is about to run out. There is a reminder.

One of the things that we can look at in the consultation is whether there is a better way of doing that to make the process more seamless for the person who has applied for anonymous registration.

I ask Rebecca Whyte to give some details of the consultation.

Our consultation includes additional suggestions on extending the anonymous registration scheme. The time limit or the expiry date of an attestation and anonymous registration is one area where responses from those who work in this sector or have an interest in it would be welcome. We can definitely look at whether the 12-month sell-by date is the most appropriate thing in all circumstances.

11:15  

Obviously, there is the detailed paper, and we are working with a number of groups that have a particular interest in the area to ensure that any further changes that we decide to make in Scotland are as appropriate as possible.

That is helpful, not for the purposes of the instrument that we are considering, which is very clear in what it does, but for the purposes of the on-going consultation. The Government will definitely have to return to that.

If someone who is anonymous gets a letter reminding them that they need to renew the registration, do they have to go through the same process all over again, or do they just have to return the letter ticking a box?

It is the same process again. Basically, they have to prove that there is a continuing need for the anonymity.

You are highlighting an area where we can potentially make further changes to improve the system, but today’s instrument is about ensuring that we have a system in place that provides the best possible protection for the individuals.

I have other observations that I would like to make but, technically, we are supposed to have a debate after the questioning, so I will sit tight until we get to that formal debate. We will have an opportunity to put one or two remarks on the record when we get to the debate, but do members have any more questions for the minister and his team?

Yes. I just want to reinforce the point that Jenny Gilruth made. If the application is to be a recurring event, the GP is the most accessible person, so there could be a recurring charge. I would be keen for that to be looked into, perhaps with the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport, because that would be a significant barrier to people.

That is a reasonable point.

There are no more questions. That was a helpful question and answer session. The debate that we will come to in a second—I hope that it will be short—might help to inform some of the Government’s thinking on the on-going consultation.

We now move to agenda item 3, which is still subordinate legislation. The committee will formally consider motion S5M-10205, to recommend approval of the draft regulations. Only the minister and members may speak in the debate so, unfortunately, the officials cannot take part. I invite the minister to speak to and move motion S5M-10205.

I thank the committee for its questions. As always, they have been helpful and they will help us in any future changes that we decide to make. The committee will notice that a number of the areas that you have previously looked at now appear in our consultation as matters that we are considering how to take forward.

I move,

That the Local Government and Communities Committee recommends that the Representation of the People (Scotland) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 [Draft] be approved.

I have a few observations and then I will bring in my colleagues if they have anything to add.

We were right to explore the period for which anonymity lasts. When it gets towards the end of that year, what happens if the person does not respond to the letter that they are sent? I am not always good at responding to letters that come through my letterbox, let alone something that I might want to block out of my mind because of pain, turmoil, stress and traumatisation. What does the electoral registration officer do if the person does not reply to the letter? I am not asking you to answer that question, but careful thought needs to be given to the transition, if the period is not to be extended beyond one year. We need to consider what that looks like and any unintended consequences if vulnerable individuals do not reply or do not engage with that. On that annual need to reapply, anyone who has looked at post-traumatic stress disorder will know that retraumatisation can be very real. The health and emotional needs of the individual have to be taken into account when looking at the arrangements for that.

However, I am conscious that that is not what we are considering today. The regulations are a good solid measure that we should all sign up to. I just wanted to put those observations on the record for the consultation.

As none of my colleagues wants to add anything in the formal debate, I invite the minister to sum up and to respond to the debate.

Thanks again for your feedback, particularly the point about what happens after 12 months. We have a note of that and we will ensure that it features strongly when we get feedback from organisations that have an interest and registration officers about changes that we can make in future.

The question is, that motion S5M-10205, in the name of the minister, be agreed to.

Motion agreed to,

That the Local Government and Communities Committee recommends that the Representation of the People (Scotland) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 [Draft] be approved.

The committee will report on the instrument shortly. That is an administrative exercise, but I have to inform people on the record that we will do that.

I thank the minister and the officials for coming. I suspend the meeting briefly before we move on to agenda item 4.

11:20 Meeting suspended.  

11:24 On resuming—