The National Assembly for Wales Referendum (Assembly Act Provisions) (Referendum Question, Date of Referendum Etc.) Order 2010

Lost postal ballot papers

12.—(1) Where a postal voter claims either to have lost or not to have received —

(a) that person’s postal ballot paper; or

(b) the postal voting statement; or

(c) one or more of the envelopes supplied for their return,

by the fourth day before the day of the poll, that person may apply (whether or not in person) to the counting officer for a replacement ballot paper.

(2) Such an application must include evidence of the voter’s identity.

(3) Where a postal voter exercises the entitlement conferred by sub-paragraph (1), that person must return the documents referred to in sub-paragraph (1)(a) to (c) which that person has received and which have not been lost.

(4) Any postal ballot paper or postal voting statement returned in accordance with sub-paragraph (3) must be immediately cancelled.

(5) The counting officer, as soon as practicable after cancelling those documents, must make up those documents in a separate packet and must seal the packet; and if on any subsequent occasion documents are cancelled as mentioned above, the sealed packet must be opened and the additional cancelled documents included in it and the packet must be again made up and sealed.

(6) Subject to sub-paragraph (7) where the application is received by the counting officer before 5p.m. on the day of the poll and the counting officer —

(a) is satisfied as to the voter’s identity; and

(b) has no reason to doubt that the postal voter has lost or has not received the original postal ballot paper or the postal voting statement or one or more of the envelopes provided for their return,

the counting officer must issue another postal ballot paper.

(7) Where the application is received by the counting officer after 5p.m. on the day before the day of the poll, the counting officer must not issue another postal ballot paper except where the postal voter applied in person.

(8) The counting officer must enter in a list kept for the purpose (“the list of lost postal ballot papers”) —

(a) the name and number of the elector as stated in the register (or, in the case of an elector who has an anonymous entry, the elector’s electoral number alone);

(b) the number of the postal ballot paper which has been lost or not received and of its replacement issued under this paragraph; and

(c) where the postal voter is a proxy, the proxy’s name and address.

(9) Paragraphs 6 (except sub-paragraph (2)), 8 and 9, and subject to sub-paragraph (10), 10 apply to the issue of a replacement postal ballot paper under sub-paragraph (6).

(10) Where the postal voter applies in person—

(a) by 5p.m. on the day before the day of the poll, the counting officer may hand a replacement postal ballot paper to that person; or

(b) after 5p.m. on the day before the day of the poll, the counting officer must hand a replacement postal ballot paper to that person,

instead of delivering it in accordance with paragraph 10.

(11) Where the counting officer issues another postal ballot paper under sub-paragraph (6), the ballot paper which has been lost or not received must be cancelled and is of no effect.