REFERENDUM (SCOTLAND) BILL COMMITTEE AGENDA. 4th Meeting, 2013 (Session 4) Thursday 21 February 2013

Transcription

1 REF/S4/13/4/A REFERENDUM (SCOTLAND) BILL COMMITTEE AGENDA 4th Meeting, 2013 (Session 4) Thursday 21 February 2013 The Committee will meet at 9.30 am in Committee Room Proposed referendum franchise bill: The Committee will take oral evidence by video conference from Stephen Carse, Registration Officer, Isle of Man Government; and will then take evidence from Gordon Blair, Depute Returning Officer, West Lothian Council and Chair of the Elections Working Group, Society of Local Authority Lawyers and Administrators in Scotland (SOLAR). 2. Proposed referendum franchise bill: The Committee will consider its approach to the scrutiny of the proposed bill at Stage 1. Andrew Mylne Clerk to the Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee Room T2.60 The Scottish Parliament Edinburgh Tel:

2 REF/S4/13/4/A The papers for this meeting are as follows Agenda item 1 SPICe briefing PRIVATE PAPER REF/S4/13/4/1 REF/S4/13/4/2 (P) Agenda item 2 Note by the Clerk REF/S4/13/4/3 Additional information Note by the Clerk REF/S4/13/4/4

3 Scottish Parliament Information Centre logo REF/S4/13/4/1 RETURNING OFFICERS AND COUNTING OFFICERS This paper was written for the Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee ahead of an oral evidence session with representatives of Returning Officers and SOLAR (Society of Local Authority Lawyers and Administrators in Scotland). It provides information on the roles of Electoral Registration Officers and Returning Officers in Scotland and the role of the Electoral Commission with regard to Returning Officers (ROs) and UK referendums. The paper also provides information on marked registers, the potential role of ROs as counting officers in the proposed Referendum and SOLAR. ELECTORAL REGISTRATION OFFICERS AND RETURNING OFFICERS The organisation and administration of elections in Great Britain is decentralised. Electoral registration and returning officers perform their respective functions before and during an election. While the two roles may in practice be performed by the same person, they are legally separate. Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) are appointed by local authorities (Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act 1983) and have a permanent administrative role, maintaining the register and absent voting records through the Assessors offices in Scotland. Each of the 32 Scottish local councils is a valuation authority and responsible for appointing an Assessor who must compile and maintain a Valuation Roll and a Council Tax Valuation List. There are however only fourteen Assessors in Scotland, four are appointed directly by a single council and the remaining ten are appointed by Valuation Joint Boards comprising elected members appointed by two or more councils. Scottish local authorities usually appoint their Assessor to be their ERO, the exceptions are Fife and the City of Dundee. Returning Officers (ROs) are administrators whose functions of organising and administering polls, only begin ahead of an election. For each type of election the legislation governing it identifies a person as the returning officer, this will usually be the person appointed under Section 41 of the 1983 Act as returning officer for the election of councillors. For example, the returning officer for all elections in Edinburgh is the Council s Chief Executive. The following information on their role and responsibilities as the RO is reproduced from the Council s website: the nomination process for candidates and political parties provision and notification of polling stations

4 appointment of presiding officers and polling clerks appropriate administration and security of polling stations separation of all ballot papers the actual count and declaration of results issue, receipt and counting of postal ballot papers all candidates' election expenses returns presentation of final account reclamation of funding from external bodies as prescribed. Although they may appoint one or more depute ROs, to discharge all or any of the functions of the office, by law Returning Officers are personally responsible for the effective running of the election in their constituency (Representation of the People Act 1983 Section 27). ELECTORAL COMMISSION AND ROS Performance standards for EROs and ROs were introduced following the Electoral Administration Act Both sets of Officers report to the Commission on how they have performed against the standards. There are 10 performance standards (Electoral Commission 2011a) which are grouped in five areas of activities: Planning and organisation Planning for an election: develop and put in place robust planning for an election Administering the poll Polling stations set-up: establish polling stations in such a way as to enable access for all voters and to ensure that polling can be carried out efficiently Producing ballot papers, poll cards and notices: provide all materials in accessible formats that are easy for voters to use and understand Candidates and agents: effectively communicate information to candidates and agents Absent voting Producing postal vote stationery: maintain voter confidence in the electoral process, with easy to use forms enabling eligible postal voters to participate in the absent voting process Issuing of postal votes: All postal voters should receive their postal ballot packs as early as possible to give them sufficient time to receive, complete and return their postal vote 2

5 Receiving and opening postal votes: Maintain confidence and transparency in the process by keeping a clear and robust audit trail and ensuring that all those entitled to attend the postal vote opening processes are able to see and understand what is being carried out, where and when Verifying and counting the votes Effective verification and count processes: Ensure confidence and transparency at the verification and count After the declaration of results Forwarding and storage of documents: Package and forward/store documents as transparently as possible, to ensure that anyone who is entitled to and who wishes to inspect public documents after the election is able to do so Review of election procedures: This standard aims to evaluate the conduct of the election and to identify any improvements for future electoral events. THE MARKED REGISTER The marked register is a copy of the register used in polling stations which is marked when electors vote. The marked absent voter lists are the equivalent documents for those who have voted by post or by proxy. The administration of the marked registers and marked voters lists in Scotland is the responsibility of the Returning Officer or the Proper Officer of the council, depending on the type of election. Any person may inspect the marked register and marked absent voter lists. As with the full electoral register, inspection of registers and lists is free of charge. Any person wanting to inspect the marked register must apply in writing. Certain people or organisations can obtain a copy of the marked registers and lists from the Returning Officer or Proper Officer, but who these are varies depending on the type of election. Certain recipients are entitled to all of the marked registers and lists the Returning Officer or Proper Officer has retained, others are limited to the registers and lists for a specific geographic area. Recipients must apply for their copy in writing and pay the fee that is set out in the relevant legislation. People or organisations usually entitled to the marked registers and lists are: Candidates who contested the election Elected members Registered political parties Local constituency parties The Electoral Commission Police forces and certain other agencies 3

6 Government departments, and certain other bodies 4

7 ELECTORAL COMMISSION AND REFERENDUMS IN UK Counting Officers for Referendums For referendums conducted in the UK, under the provisions of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA), the Chair of the Commission acts as the Chief Counting Officer (CCO). The legislation also states that the CCO will appoint a counting officer for each relevant area in Great Britain. In Scotland, the relevant areas are local government areas. Those counting officers are usually the ROs for the councils. The Commission provides direction for counting officers (for example, Electoral Commission 2011b) on how to administer referendums. This comprises 5 modules covering subjects similar to the performance standards for elections: Planning and organisation: o The planning process o Staffing o Training and briefing o Managing contractors and suppliers o Maintaining integrity o Raising awareness Administering the poll: o Polling station voting o Production of ballot papers o Poll cards o Publication of notices o Campaigners and agents o Accredited observers Absent voting: o Absent voting timetable and preparing the absent voting processes o Procedure for issuing and distributing postal votes and receiving and opening postal votes The verification and count: o Preparing for the verification and count o Receipt of polling station materials and sealed boxes of postal ballot papers 5

8 o Verification o The count, with detailed instructions given for the transmission and collation of results on a regional and national basis After the declaration of result: o Storage and disposal of documents o Data returns and feedback. DRAFT REFERENDUM BILL The draft referendum Bill published by the Scottish Government in January 2012 (Your Scotland, your Referendum) contained provisions (section 4) which would require Ministers to appoint a CCO for the Referendum, who would in turn appoint counting officers for each local government area. In the consultation paper accompanying the draft Referendum Bill, the Scottish Government acknowledged the work of the recently formed Electoral Management Board for Scotland, which it believed provided a sound approach to the management of local elections in Scotland, an approach it said should be followed for the Referendum. The Government, therefore, proposed that the poll and the count be managed in the same way as those elections, with the ROs (as the counting officers) under the overall direction of a Chief Counting Officer. The draft Bill also proposed that the Electoral Commission should have specific functions with regard to the Referendum. These functions include a power to issue guidance to the CCO (with the CCO s consent) to the counting officers on the exercise of their functions. SOLAR (SOCIETY OF LOCAL AUTHORITY LAWYERS & ADMINISTRATORS IN SCOTLAND) The Society of Local Authority Lawyers and Administrators in Scotland (SOLAR) is a membership organisation which is open to anyone employed as a solicitor or administrator in departments providing central administrative and/or legal services within local authorities in Scotland. Its members include senior and experienced electoral administrators, including Depute Returning Officers, from every authority in Scotland. The Society s aim is to promote and develop the professional knowledge and talents of its members including organising a range of activities for members. For example, the Society has a number of Working Groups for those working in specific areas of legal and administrative services, including an Elections Working Group, which comprises 14 representatives from authorities in Scotland which range in size. SOURCES City of Edinburgh Council: About your Council: Elections and voting: The Returning Officer Electoral Commission (2009) Essentials of effective election management: planning for a UK Parliamentary general election 6

9 data/assets/electoral_commission_pdf_file/0020/ 81362/UKPGE-Essentials-WEB.pdf Electoral Commission (2011a) Performance standards for Returning Officers in Great Britain: Presented to Parliament pursuant to section 9A of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act data/assets/pdf_file/0003/145371/performance- Standards-for-ROs-FINAL-web.pdf Electoral Commission (2011b) List of numbered directions for Counting Officers administering the referendum on the UK Parliamentary voting system as a standalone event (last updated 9 March 2011) data/assets/pdf_file/0006/109194/complete-listof-directions.pdf Electoral Commission (2012) Managing electoral registration in Great Britain: guidance for Electoral Registration Officers data/assets/pdf_file/0006/42927/full-ero- FINAL_amended_November_2012.pdf Electoral Commission: Guidance: Resources for electoral administrators: Referendums: Instructions and resources: After the declaration of result European Parliamentary Elections Regulations 2004 SI 2004/293 Gay, O (2010) Responsibilities of returning officers Law Commission (2012) Electoral law in the United Kingdom: a scoping report Local Electoral Administration and Registration Services (Scotland) Act 2006 asp 14 Representation of the People Act 1983 C.2 Representation of the People (Scotland) Regulations 2001 SI 2001/ Representation of the People (Scotland) (Amendment) Regulations 2001 SI 2001/ Scottish Government (2008) Chief Returning Officer for Scotland: A consultation exercise to discuss options for the creation of a post of Chief Returning Officer for Scotland Scottish Government (2012) Your Scotland, your referendum 7

10 Scottish Local Government Elections Order 2011 Scottish Parliament (Elections etc.) Order 2010 SOLAR (Society of Lawyers and Administrators in Scotland) Francesca McGrath Senior Researcher 18 February

11 REF/S4/13/4/3 Background Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee Approach to Draft Referendum Franchise (Scotland) Bill Note by the Clerk 1. This paper invites the Committee to agree a call for written evidence on the Referendum Franchise (Scotland) Bill, agree a list of witnesses for oral evidence and agree to delegate witness expenses to the Convener. Call for evidence 2. Subject to meeting the formal requirements for introduction it is anticipated the Bill and accompanying documents will be introduced to the Parliament on Monday 11 March 2013 and published on Tuesday 12 March the same day on which the Parliamentary Bureau is expected to refer the Bill to this Committee, in line with its remit to consider matters relating to The Scotland Act 1998 (Modification of Schedule 5) Order 2013, the Referendum (Scotland) Bill, its implementation and any associated legislation. The current working short title of the Bill is the Scottish Independence Referendum (Franchise) Bill. This may be subject to change prior to introduction. The call for evidence can be adjusted to reflect any minor changes before publication. 3. If agreed today, the call for evidence can be published as soon as the Bill is available in print and has been formally referred i.e. in the afternoon of 12 March. 4. In accordance with the Committee s agreed timetable, the Deputy First Minister has been invited to give oral evidence at the meeting on 28 March. It would be beneficial to receive written evidence in advance of this meeting in order that any points raised by the submissions can be explored with the Deputy First Minister at that meeting. The draft call for evidence therefore suggests a deadline for written submissions of Friday 22 March (to enable submissions to be circulated on Monday 25 March). 5. It may be, however, that not all organisation or individuals will be in a position to meet this tight timescale (10 days from issuing of call for evidence to deadline). As such it is proposed to set a later fall-back deadline of Friday 12 April, to enable further evidence to be taken into account in the Committee s Stage 1 report. If any such evidence raises significant issues, it would of course be open to the DFM to comment on it in writing before the report is finalised. 6. The call for evidence (see annexe) will be published on the Committee s webpage and brought to the attention of media contacts and stakeholders. (Information provided in the call on the content of the Bill is based on communications between the clerks and the Scottish Government Bill Team, who have confirmed that it is accurate.) 1

12 REF/S4/13/4/3 Oral Evidence 7. There are three Committee meetings available for oral evidence on the introduced Bill: 14, 21 and 28 March. 8. The meetings on 14 and 21 March could each accommodate two panels of witnesses (45-55 minutes per panel), assuming a meeting start-time of 9.30 am. It may be possible to accommodate three panels (45 minutes per panel) in a meeting starting at 9 am. However, it needs to be borne in mind that panels involving witnesses from different organisations almost inevitably require more time than single witnesses/organisations. Some time also needs to be kept aside on 21 March to consider an approach paper on the proposed Referendum Bill. 9. On 28 March the Committee is taking evidence from the Deputy First Minister for which it would be appropriate to allow at least an hour. It would be possible also to hear evidence from one other panel, earlier in the same meeting. (Where time permits, this is normally avoided, so that the Minister has an opportunity to consider all the evidence given by other witnesses in preparing for her own evidence session. However, unanticipated points made earlier in the same meeting can, if need be, be responded to in writing afterwards.) 10. Taking all of the above into account, a total of 5 (or perhaps 6) panels (excluding the DFM) is probably the most that can realistically be accommodated. 11. It would be helpful if the Committee was able to identify at this stage the organisations or individuals it wishes to hear oral evidence from. Given the necessary tight deadline for the call for evidence there will not be time for further oral witnesses to be identified later once written submissions have been received. 12. Suggested witnesses for the oral evidence sessions have been set out below for consideration. Related organisations have been grouped where some or all of them could form a single panel. The Electoral Commission probably in a panel on its own The Electoral Management Board / The Scottish Assessors Association / The Association of Electoral Administrators as a single panel The Electoral Reform Society probably in a panel on its own Information Commissioner s Office probably in a panel on its own Scotland s Commissioner for Children and Young People / The Scottish Youth Parliament / National Union of Students Scotland as a single panel (WithScotland) The Chair of the Scottish Child Protection Committee Chairs Forum probably in a panel on its own 2

13 REF/S4/13/4/3 Conclusion 13. The Committee is invited to: agree the draft call for evidence in the Annexe decide those from whom it wishes to hear oral evidence; and agree to delegate witness expenses to the Convener. 3

14 REF/S4/13/4/3 Annexe A Call for evidence on the Scottish Independence Referendum (Franchise) Bill The Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee has been established to consider the legislation relating to the forthcoming referendum on independence. The Committee is seeking views on the general principles of the Scottish Independence Referendum (Franchise) Bill. A copy of the Bill and accompanying Policy Memorandum and Explanatory Notes can be found at: Scottish Independence Referendum (Franchise) Bill (link not yet active) The Bill was introduced to the Parliament on 11 March The Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee has been designated as the lead committee for Stage 1 consideration of the Bill. Aims of the Bill The Bill aims to: Give Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) a power and a duty to collect the information necessary to register eligible under-16s who will be 16 or over by 31 December 2014 (the latest date on which the referendum could be held under the terms of the agreement with the UK Government). EROs will be asked to collect this information at the same time as they conduct the next annual household canvass. Require each ERO to collate this additional information into a Register of Young Voters for his or her area, which will contain the details of young people who will be 16 at the time of the referendum. (Those who will be aged 17 or over by the date of the referendum will be included on the normal registers of local government electors instead, as they currently are.) Give Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) a power and a duty to maintain the Register of Young Voters under rolling registration (that is, as any additional eligible young people register to vote in the referendum after the canvass). Prohibit Electoral Registration Officers from publishing the Register of Young Voters, and direct that they provide the material it contains only to a prescribed, limited group of people. Further details on the Bill are contained in the Policy Memorandum and Explanatory Notes. Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee consideration The Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee has already taken pre-stage 1 evidence on the subject matter of the Bill and expects to consider written submissions and to take oral evidence on the Bill from mid-march until mid-april, before reporting on the Bill s general principles in early May

15 REF/S4/13/4/3 Written evidence should be submitted, if possible, by Friday 22 March 2013 (to inform the Committee s oral evidence session with the Deputy First Minister on Thursday 28 March). For those unable to meet this deadline, written evidence may also be submitted up to Friday 12 April 2013, and the Committee will still endeavour to take such evidence into account in its report. How to submit written evidence Written evidence should normally not exceed 6 pages in length and should, if possible, be submitted electronically (preferably in MS Word format) to the Committee clerks at referendum.committee@scottish.parliament.uk. It may also be posted to Clerk to the Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee, Room T2.60, Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh EH99 1SP. Before submitting evidence please read the Parliament s policy on the treatment of written evidence. Any queries should be directed to the Committee clerks, whose details are available on the Committee s web-page. Contact Any queries about written submissions should be addressed in the first instance to the Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee clerking team at the above address or (0131)

16 REF/S4/13/4/4 Referendum (Scotland) Bill Committee Follow-up information from last meeting Note by the Clerk 1. At the last meeting, Michael de la Haye, from Jersey, in responding to a question by Patrick Harvie, referred (col 170) to a video commissioned by the States of Jersey to promote voter turnout. He sent the link after the meeting and members can view it here: 2. Paul Whitfield (col 182) promised, in response to a question by Annabel Goldie, to provide additional information about how Guernsey deals with situations where it is desirable to withhold the address of a vulnerable young person who is registered to vote. 3. Accordingly, he provided the following further information (by ): As promised, I have considered the question posed in respect of the impact of registering 15 year olds and the protection of their identities when necessary. Firstly, I can confirm that the details of rising attainers those fifteen year olds who have preregistered are not included on the printed public version of the Roll until their 16 th birthday. As I outlined in my evidence this morning, the dates of birth of applicants are used solely within the Electoral Roll Office and are not included in any printed versions of the Roll provided to candidates, Returning Officers or public inspection. Secondly, whilst I appreciate the question revolved around the registration of 15 year olds and the possible data protection considerations of protecting their identity, it might be worthwhile to step back and consider anonymous registration generally in Guernsey. It is, of course, a sad fact, but in all communities there is a small group of vulnerable people who, for their own safety, cannot allow their name or address to be made known publically. I understand that in the United Kingdom (and indeed many other Commonwealth countries) such people are able to register on the Electoral Roll anonymously, subject to the support of a court orders or a signed attestation. In Guernsey, however such provisions have not been introduced. Within a community the size of Guernsey (just 24 sq miles), it is relatively easy to find out where a person is living and working, and simply registering anonymously on the Electoral Roll is unlikely to offer any real protection. Non-harassment Court Orders usually state the address of the complainant as the Order restrains the person concerned from visiting particular premises (ie the complainant s address) so where concerns have previously been identified and court proceedings initiated, individuals are typically already aware of addresses. 1

17 REF/S4/13/4/4 It would therefore not be possible in Guernsey to protect the address of a 16 year old who wishes to register on the Roll. 4. Finally, Annabel Goldie also asked at the end of the meeting for some further briefing on individual electoral registration and the Electoral Registration and Administration Act There was brief coverage of this in the SPICe paper circulated for the meeting on 31 January (paper 1, page 8-9), including links to relevant websites; but it was felt that a concise summary of the main issues would be of value to the Committee. SPICe is currently preparing this, and it will be circulated shortly. Scottish Government officials have also been asked to comment on the implications of IER and the 2013 Act at the informal briefing arranged for 28 February. Clerk to the Committee 18 February