Electoral Administration Bill

I beg to move, That the Bill be now read the Third time. The Bill is an important step in the very big task of restoring health and legitimacy to our democracy. Our democracy is not working properly unless everyone eligible is registered to vote, everyone participates in elections and no one fiddles the vote. The Bill takes forward measures on all of those three legs of the stool on which democracy depends. I pay tribute to the Under-Secretary of State for Scotland, my hon. Friend the Member for Inverclyde (David Cairns), for his excellent work on the Bill. I said at the outset that we would listen and respond to points made on the Bill from all parts of the House. Our approach has been non-party political and non-partisan. In that spirit, I particularly thank the Opposition—the hon. Members for North-East Hertfordshire (Mr. Heald) and for Somerton and Frome (Mr. Heath)—for their helpful suggestions, many of which have found their way into the Bill. I acknowledge and thank our Whip on the Committee, my hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff, West (Kevin Brennan), and my Parliamentary Private Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Battersea (Martin Linton).I acknowledge the work of Select Committees, above all the Constitutional Affairs Committee, and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister Committee, the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee and the Standards and Privileges Committee, all of which have had a substantive input into the Bill. I thank Back Benchers from all sides, particularly those who served on the Committee. We were helped by the assistance of the hon. Member for Belfast, East (Mr. Robinson). I single out my hon. Friend the Member for Vale of Clwyd (Chris Ruane), because much of the discussion that we have had in the House and in Committee was informed by the fact that he has asked a great many parliamentary questions, elicited answers and done a great deal of research. I also thank hon. Members who did not serve on the Committee, but who none the less played a large part in producing the substance of the Bill. I thank the hon. Member for South Staffordshire (Sir Patrick Cormack) for introducing what I call the Cormack amendments. I also thank hon. Members in all parts of the House, particularly the hon. Member for Chichester (Mr. Tyrie) and the hon. Member for Blaby (Mr. Robathan), who highlighted the issues of service voters and their under-registration. I look forward to further debate on that in another place. Much of the Bill has been agreed, and much of it has been changed, often at the suggestion of Back Benchers or Opposition Members. One thing that has not changed, however, is the position of prisoners, who are not entitled to vote if they have been convicted. Although we agree with the official Opposition about convicted prisoners, we do not agree with them about the roll-out of personal identifiers as a condition of registration, which they think should happen immediately. The Government have decided that that must be piloted before a national roll-out, so we agree on the principles, but disagree on implementation. Our approach has remained non-partisan, consultative and evidence-based, which is why we have stuck with the pilots and will insist on them before any roll-out. After Third Reading, we will send the Bill from the House of Commons to the House of Lords, and I look forward to hearing their lordships’ views. I know that their lordships will acknowledge that the Bill is about elections and bear in mind that consideration by the elected House has been thorough and non-partisan. I am sure that my noble Friend Baroness Ashton will share the approach adopted by me and my ministerial colleagues by taking an open-minded and non-partisan approach to amendments introduced in the Lords.