Electoral Administration Bill

moved Amendment No. 118:"After Clause 69, insert the following new clause—"““Legal incapacity to vote ABOLITION OF COMMON LAW INCAPACITY: MENTAL STATE (1)   Any rule of the common law which provides that a person is subject to a legal incapacity to vote by reason of his mental state is abolished. (2)   Accordingly, in section 202(1) of the 1983 Act (general provisions as to interpretation), in the definition of ““legal incapacity”” after ““addition”” insert ““, where applicable,””. (3)   And in section 10(1) of the Elected Authorities (Northern Ireland) Act 1989 (c. 3) (interpretation), in the definition of ““legal incapacity”” omit the words ““or of any subsisting provision of the common law””.”” The noble Lord said: My Lords, in moving Amendment No. 118, I shall also speak to Amendments Nos. 132, 139, 148, 151, 152, 154 and 156, which are consequent upon it. I am supported in these amendments by my colleague in the disability field, the noble Lord, Lord Carter. I am delighted to see him in his place this evening. The amendments all relate to what some might call an anomaly and others an outrage in electoral law, which I highlighted at Second Reading. The existing common law relating to elections denies the right to vote to those it refers to as ““idiots”” and ““lunatics””. I hope the whole House will agree that such language, when used to refer to people with a learning disability or mental illness, has no place in a modern democracy. I am delighted that the Minister agrees with me, and am grateful to her for indicating her support for these amendments and for the assistance that she and her department have given me in drafting them. The changes I propose are of great symbolic and practical importance to people with a learning disability and to other disabled people, who are still subjected to abuse and discrimination—which should be challenged by the law, not enshrined within it. I should declare an interest in this issue as the president of the Royal Mencap Society, an organisation which has campaigned for these changes and which will welcome them wholeheartedly. Amendment No. 188 would abolish any common law rule which links a person’s incapacity to vote to his mental state. That is what currently ties the language of ““idiots”” and ““lunatics”” to electoral law, and has led to disabled people being denied the right to vote as the result of unjustified assumptions about their mental capacity being made be election officials and members of the public. Abolishing the common law rule would make disabled people subject to exactly the same eligibility criteria as everyone else. The other amendments clarify the language used about disabled people in election law by replacing the word ““incapacity”” with ““disability””. Incapacity is an important concept in the law around disabled people’s decision making—as the Minister who last year so ably steered the Mental Capacity Act through the House well knows. Yet it has a different meaning in electoral law, for it means legal disqualification from voting, rather than a physical or mental condition which makes voting difficult. For the purposes of this Bill, it seems best to avoid suggestions that disabled people have any kind of incapacity. Disabled people have the right to vote and the right not to be insulted. By accepting these amendments, this House can show its commitment to upholding the equality of disabled people and protecting them from discrimination and abuse. I beg to move.