Admission to petition signing place
22.—(1) The petition clerk must exclude all persons from the petition signing place except—
(a)the petition officer;
(b)any person wishing to sign the petition;
(c)any person under the age of 18 who is accompanying a person to the petition signing place;
(d)any person representing the Electoral Commission;
(e)any assistant appointed to attend at the petition signing place;
(f)a constable on duty.
(2) The petition clerk may regulate the total number of persons admitted to the petition signing place at the same time.
(3) A constable or person employed by a petition officer may be admitted to sign the petition in person otherwise than at that person’s allotted petition signing place upon the production and surrender of a certificate as to their employment, which must be in the form set out in Form I in Schedule 2 and signed by an officer of police of the rank of inspector or above, or by the petition officer (as the case may be).
(4) Any certificate surrendered under paragraph (3) must be immediately cancelled.
(5) In the application of this regulation to Northern Ireland, the reference in paragraph (3) to an officer of police is a reference to a member of the Police Service of Northern Ireland of the rank of chief inspector or above.