The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations make provision related to the implementation of section 3 (restriction of period for which person can apply for a postal vote) and section 6 (limit on the number of electors for whom a proxy can vote) of the Elections Act 2022 (c. 37) (“EA 2022”), as well as amending provisions related to the processing of applications for electoral registration under section 10ZC of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (c. 2) (“the 1983 Act”).

Part 2 of these Regulations makes amendments to the Representation of the People (England and Wales) Regulation 2001 (S.I. 2001/341) (“the 2001 Regulations”). Regulation 4 amends Part 3 of the 2001 Regulations to update provisions regarding how electoral registration applications submitted online via the digital service and the information contained within them are processed. Regulation 5 amends Part 4 of the 2001 Regulations, providing for the online submission of relevant absent voting applications (see paragraph 1A(7)(a)(i) of Schedule 2 to the 1983 Act), as well as the verification of information provided in such applications (whether or not submitted online) and the power for registration officers to request further evidence from applicants in order to verify the applicant’s identity. The amendments to Part 4 of the 2001 Regulations also provide for additional notifications to be sent by registration officers where an application for postal ballot papers to be sent to different address is granted, refused or disregarded for the purposes of a particular election. Regulation 6 replaces the prescribed form of the official poll card and official proxy poll card used in respect of parliamentary elections in England and Wales, as well as the prescribed form of the proxy paper.

Part 3 of these Regulations makes equivalent amendments to the Representation of the People (Scotland) Regulations 2001 (S.I. 2001/497) to those made by Part 2 of these Regulations.

Regulations 12 and 13 make amendments to regulation 98 of the Representation of the People (Scotland) Regulations 1986 (S.I. 1986/1111) and Schedule 2 to the Representation of the People (Combination of Polls) (England and Wales) Regulations 2004 (S.I. 2004/294) (which modify the parliamentary elections rules set out in Schedule 1 to the 1983 Act where the poll for a UK parliamentary election is combined with one or more other polls in Scotland and England and Wales respectively) as a result of the amendments made to the statutory questions in rule 35 of the parliamentary election rules by paragraph 4 of Schedule 4 to EA 2022.

Regulations 14 to 20 amend various instruments to make equivalent amendments to election, referendum and recall petition rules to those made to the UK parliamentary election rules in Schedule 1 to the 1983 Act by paragraph 4 of Schedule 4 to EA 2022 and to update the prescribed form of equivalent poll cards and proxy poll cards. Additionally, in relation to Police and Crime Commissioner elections and recall petitions, regulations 17 and 19 makes equivalent amendments to those made by Parts 2 and 3 of these Regulations for the online submission of absent voting or absent signing applications and associated verification procedures and powers.

Regulation 21 updates the Welsh language version of the statutory questions for proxies, and the Welsh and English versions of the poll card and proxy poll card, for use in relation to police and crime commissioner elections in Wales.

Regulation 22 amends the Voter Identification Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1382) to update provisions regarding how identity document applications submitted online via the digital service and the information contained within them are processed, as well as applying a similar limit on potential attestors to an applicant’s identity as are provided for in relation to relevant absent voting applications.

Schedule 2 contains transitional and savings provisions related to the amendments made by the EA 2022 and these Regulations to the rules governing elections, referendums and recall petitions.

A full impact assessment of the effect that this instrument will have on the costs of businesses, the voluntary sector and the public sector is available from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities at 2 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DF and published with the Explanatory Memorandum alongside this instrument on www.legislation.gov.uk.