I thank the hon. Gentleman. We support the intention of the amendment and would appreciate it if the Minister looked further into the matters facing those with disabilities. The Bill should ensure that the voting process is accessible, from registration to the casting of the ballots, to all those with disabilities. We should certainly do all we can to ensure that the Bill complies with the disability equality duty contained in section 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act 2005.
The hon. Member for Sheffield, Attercliffe tabled amendments Nos. 28 and 29, and we support the general intention behind them, particularly in relation to how they could facilitate the better implementation of individual registration. On individual registration, we recognise that some form of roll-over measures may be needed, based on the experience of Northern Ireland. We concur with the views put to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister Committee that we should move swiftly to individual registration with vigorous data swapping between electoral registration officers and utilities, the Post Office, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency and others.
Amendment No. 28 places a welcome duty on registration officers to use the records and resources available to them to ensure an accurate register. As I have said, we believe that that should be the foundation of the electoral process. We also believe, however, that access to information should not be unfettered. While we support the intention of the amendment, it might be better to specify the type of information available for data sharing in this primary legislation. It may also be necessary to consider safeguards beyond the Data Protection Act 1998 to prevent unfettered access and possible abuse of information. I should be interested to hear the Minister’s views.
We have similar worries about amendment No. 29. Effective and unencumbered data sharing would clearly make for an accurate register, but adequate safeguards would again be necessary. We support the use of data matching against other public registers to enable potentially eligible electors who are not yet registered to be identified and targeted more effectively. The implications of sharing information between local authorities, Departments and other agencies require detailed consideration by the expert agencies.
Electoral Administration Bill
Proceeding contribution from
Jonathan Djanogly
(Conservative)
in the House of Commons on Tuesday, 8 November 2005.
It occurred during Debate on bills
and
Committee of the Whole House (HC) on Electoral Administration Bill 2005-06.
Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
439 c190-1 
Session
2005-06
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House of Commons chamber
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2024-04-21 21:30:05 +0100
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