Electoral Administration Bill

I can also be brief. I support the Government’s view that the maximum amount of time should be allowed for late registrations. We have all had the experience of knocking on doors during a general election campaign and speaking to people who are distraught because they are not on the register when they thought that they were, and who find that they cannot vote as they want to do. It seems appropriate that we give them the maximum time to register. Either they are entitled to vote or not. The hon. Member for Isle of Wight (Mr. Turner) says that, if they are tardy or feckless, they should not be allowed to vote. I am sorry, but I do not agree. If they are entitled to vote, they should be able to do so, within the constraints and practicalities of the registration process. My amendment moves the relevant date from the fifth to the seventh day before the poll. That is partly a probing amendment, because I want to clarify that we are referring to working days. If that is not the case, the deadline on the fifth day before the poll will be on Saturday evening, and that is not in practical terms the most sensible deadline to give registration officers for the registration of new electors. I would have thought that Thursday evening would be a more sensible deadline. I also want to deal with the problem mentioned by the hon. Member for Isle of Wight: once someone has gone on to the register at that late stage, it is appropriate that they receive something from the candidates to inform their vote if the parties are capable of doing that. The amendment provides a little extra scope to do that without defeating the objective of the Government. I would be interested to hear the Minister’s response.