I've blogged a few times about electoral registration - this is a key issue for us at a ward level as we have a highly-mobile electorate. Turnover is something like 50% annually - a lot of this is down to the fact we have a large student population - but there are other factors too including increasing numbers of HMOs, and flats in the ward. This can make it tricky for us to keep track of our electorate, but more importantly it means we have to work hard to engage with voters to find out what issues matter to them and to keep them informed about our activities - we never rest on our laurels! The high turnover in our area and much of central Reading also makes things difficult for the Council and other bodies when it comes to planning services.
Reading Borough Council's approach to electoral registration has improved markedly since I was first elected. We have raised a number of concerns about how the Council went about encouraging people to register over the years (including highlighting inaccuracies in the register) and I'm pleased to see this matter is now taken very seriously by officers and each year RBC gets better at getting more people who live in Reading to join the electoral register.For more details about the latest electoral facts and figures relating to voter registration in Reading check out this blog post I wrote last November.Sadly this local success is not reflected elsewhere across the country, as this article published today in the Local Government Chronicle confirms. The Electoral Commission which assesses the performance of Electoral Returning Officers (EROs) in councils estimates that 41% of EROs are not meeting the required standard on promoting participation in elections.
Research by the Electoral Commission has found:
- Non-registration is higher among certain groups, particularly young people aged 17-24 years old (56% not registered) and people from black and minority ethnic communities (31% not registered).
- People changing address is a key reason for non-registration. Just 21% of those living at their present address for a year or less are registered to vote.
Councils now have a duty to promote democracy in their areas, not just to count the votes cast. I recently lobbied the Council in Reading successfully to support the natonal 'Shadow A Councillor' scheme to introduce more young people to the democratic process. More needs to be done to encourage under-represented groups including members of Black and Minority ethnic groups to become councillors. At the end of week 10 of this year's annual canvass, RBC had received 46,738 electoral registration returns from households, out of a total of 66,785 households (70.0%). There is clearly plenty of work still to be done to increase voter registration but RBC has the right idea - targetting polling districts with low voter registration and targetting types of housing where fewer people tend to register - including HMOs and student areas This isn't cheap to do but I think it is vitally important if the Council is going to have anything approaching legitimacy - a genuine mandate to govern. As a political party we believe strongly in the need to encourage local people to participate in local and general elections - greater participation will lead to more credible government - better decision-making and more accountability. Low voter registration, like low voter turnout is a concern as it indicates that people do not see the point of voting. If particular groups are represented on the electoral register in small numbers it can be hard for them to get their voice heard. It's up to us to convince people of the importance of voting. So this weekend we will be out again (as we are every year) encouraging people living in the ward to register to vote and to exercise their vote when the time comes. No taxation without representation is an old phrase but I think it's still valid! For details of the deadline to register to vote in this years important local and general elections and to download a registration form visit RBC's website.
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