Clause 24 - Omission of reference to Maundy Thursday
Electoral Administration Bill
6:30 pm
Harriet Harman (Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs; Camberwell and Peckham, Labour)
We have to have complicated drafting—[Interruption.] For goodness' sake. I will resist the temptation for us all to be in a lather of agreement about this issue, because the other place might want to know that we have considered it. Potentially, it touches on religious issues because Maundy Thursday will be a countable day, as opposed to a non-countable day, and it is the day before Good Friday. So, I ask hon. Members to bear with me.
Under electoral law, Maundy Thursday is included in the list of days—it includes Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays—that are to be disregarded for the purposes of the electoral timetable. Traditionally, Maundy Thursday was a holiday for public servants. However, Maundy Thursday is a working day for the majority of people involved in the election process, including voters, electoral administrators, candidates and political parties. Elections often take place in May, and Maundy Thursday will often arise during the campaign. To help make the electoral timetable more straightforward and intelligible, and to avoid any confusion, the Government have agreed that there is no longer any need for Maundy Thursday to be included in the list of days to be disregarded for the purposes of the election timetable.
I am conscious that it has been pointed out that the change could mean that a general election might be held on Maundy Thursday, which is a very important day in the Christian calendar. Although that is unlikely to happen in practice, I should make it clear that the provision implements a recommendation of the Electoral Commission arising from its review of election timetables in the United Kingdom. The Electoral Commission published a consultation paper as part of its review, which was sent to all registered political parties, including Christian parties such as the Christian Peoples Alliance. No representations were received from Christian groups, or anyone else, opposing the Maundy Thursday proposal. Maundy Thursday has already been removed as a ''non-day'' in Scotland for elections to the Scottish Parliament and Scottish local elections.