Clause 36 - Tendered votes in certain circumstances
Electoral Administration Bill
1:45 pm
David Heath (Shadow Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs & Shadow Leader of the House, Law Officers (Constitutional Affairs); Somerton and Frome, Liberal Democrat)
That was a helpful response. We share the wish to maximise the number of people who could take advantage of the relevant paragraph. It is still slightly odd, given that the questions that a presiding officer can ask of a voter are so carefully prescribed—they are laid down, and the list is precise, not permissive—that the first question is not ''Do you realise that you can apply for a tendered vote?'' That is not one of the questions that can be asked; it can be asked only when an application has been made by the voter.
I accept that in practice most presiding officers will probably do as I have suggested; they will not look in the rule book and think ''Gosh, I am not sure whether I can ask whether this person knows the electoral law, and whether they have read schedule 1 to the 1983 Act recently, to inform themselves that they have a tendered vote.'' They will take it as read that they are doing their duty if they make the person concerned aware of the situation. However, that is not explicit in the Bill; in fact, the reverse is almost explicit. Because prescribed questions are to be asked, there is an inference that other questions are not to be asked as part of the process.
Will the Minister reconsider the matter to see whether clarification can be included in the code of guidance? If so, and provided that everyone is clear that what I have described should happen, there is no purpose to my amendment. Nevertheless, it would not unduly hurt the Bill if it were accepted, so that the Minister's intention would be made clear. I beg to ask leave to withdraw the amendment.
Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.
Clause 36 ordered to stand part of the Bill.