The Scottish Parliament (Elections etc.) Order 1999

Voting by blind persons

47.—(1) If a voter makes an application to the presiding officer to be allowed on the ground of blindness to vote with the assistance of another person by whom he is accompanied (in this Schedule referred to as “the companion”), the presiding officer shall require the voter to declare orally whether he is so incapacitated by his blindness as to be unable to vote without assistance.

(2) If the presiding officer–

(a) is satisfied that the voter is so incapacitated; and

(b) is also satisfied by a written declaration made by the companion (in this Schedule referred to as “the declaration made by the companion of a blind voter”) that the companion–

(i) is a qualified person within the meaning of this paragraph; and

(ii) has not previously assisted more than one blind person to vote at the election,

the presiding officer shall grant the application, and then anything which is by these Rules required to be done to or by that voter in connection with the giving of his vote may be done to, or with the assistance of, the companion.

(3) For the purposes of this paragraph, a person shall be qualified to assist a blind voter to vote, if that person is either–

(a) a person who is entitled to vote as an elector at the election; or

(b) the father, mother, brother, sister, husband, wife, son or daughter of the blind voter and has attained the age of 18 years.

(4) The name and number in the register of electors of every voter whose vote is given in accordance with this paragraph and the name and address of the companion shall be entered on a list (in this Schedule referred to as “the list of blind voters assisted by companions”).

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (4) above, in the case of a person voting as proxy for an elector, the number to be entered together with the voter’s name shall be the elector’s number.

(6) The declaration made by the companion–

(a) shall be in the form V set out in the Appendix;

(b) shall be made before the presiding officer at the time when the voter applies to vote with the assistance of a companion and shall forthwith be given to the presiding officer who shall attest and retain it.

(7) No fee or other payment shall be charged in respect of the declaration.

(8) At a Scottish parliamentary general election, the same list of blind voters assisted by companions may be used for votes marked on constituency ballot papers and votes marked on regional ballot papers and, where it is so used, an entry in that list shall unless the contrary intention appears be taken to mean that the votes of the elector in question were so given in relation to each such ballot paper.