Electoral Administration Bill

moved Amendment No. 27:"Before Clause 13, insert the following new clause—" ““INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATION (1)   There shall be individual voter registration in England, Wales and Scotland. (2)   The Secretary of State may by order make provision to give effect to subsection (1).”” The noble Baroness said: My Lords, this amendment deals with individual registration, which was briefly touched on in the previous debate. We still think that it would be helpful to have individual voter registration across the country, bypassing the traditional provisions of the pilot scheme to which the Minister has already referred. As she knows, I am delighted that her department have agreed to abandon the majority of the pilot schemes by removing half the sections in the Bill. The introduction of photographs on ballot papers does not meet with my approval, but at least it is not a pilot scheme that directly interferes with the voting process. This amendment is tabled with pragmatism at its heart. We on these Benches entirely advocate individual registration and if we could implement that tomorrow we would. I would like to be clear on that point. We no longer live in a society with a head of household in every house. Apart from there being many houses of multiple occupancy—for example, student halls and care homes—increasingly families are splitting up, people are living with their partners in complete equality, and nobody considers themselves in charge of the home above anybody else. As the Electoral Commission says,"““the current system of household registration is outdated and open to . . . error””." Individual registration should go beyond just postal voting. It is about creating a culture of civic responsibility in which ““one man, one vote”” is the absolute guiding principle. I know that the Electoral Commission is in full support of this, and will just remind the House what it says."““Without individual registration it is not possible to carry out reliable checks to prevent postal fraud, or to introduce new methods of voting which will promote participation””." While we are thrilled that the pilot schemes have been abandoned, we would encourage the Government to go much further and demonstrate a fresh approach to the electoral system. Individual registration in Ireland has improved the whole culture of voting. A Commons committee on Northern Ireland affairs stated that it has,"““served to increase the level of public confidence in the integrity of the electoral process””." I hope that this amendment will be supported, and for an acceptance that household registration is out of date and fails to recognise the importance of each single voter. We do not need a drastic change in the principle of our electoral system, merely a fresh way of implementing its basic functions, which have been moved a stage forward by the amendments we have just agreed to. I beg to move.