OK, maybe not the sexiest subject to read about just before the Christmas and New Year celebrations, but pretty important all the same, the way you register to vote has changed, if you didn't already know...
By now most readers should have received a letter saying whether they need to re-register to vote, as the registration system has changed from household to individual registration following the Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013.
If you meet the conditions for registering to vote, that is, you are 16 or over and British, or a national of an EU or Commonwealth country, and you are asked to register to vote, you should do so. Also, should you be asked to register to vote and you do not, now you can be fined £80! Although this has not been made a criminal offence, and we have been assured we will not be fined if we have a valid reason not to register, I wouldn't feel all that reassured where money-making and government are involved...
Plus, it is important to remember that if you are not on the Electoral Register, you cannot vote at local and parliamentary elections, which are coming up in 6 months time or so, nor at European Parliamentary elections. Being on the register also makes you eligible to take part in jury service (jurors being selected at random from the register), and the register is used to help prevent or detect crime, and for checking applications for loans and credit.
It is illegal for the Electoral Register itself to be used for any other purpose. However, there is a second register, called the 'Open Register', which is sold by councils to bodies such as debt collection agencies, charities and employers. Indeed, if you do not want to be on the Open Register, you have to specifically 'opt out' when registering to vote, and make sure you are so opted, if re-registering, to stop even more money being made out of you without your consent.
Why this change? Well, the Government states it is concerned with low turn-outs at elections in the UK, and also worried about people voting at elections who have no right to vote in particular constituencies. This is described as a policy to help 'involve more people in the political process, not to discourage political participation.'
A reminder, universal suffrage wasn't reality in the UK until as recently as 1928, when women were allowed to vote at the same age as men (21), and just 10 years earlier, when women over 30 were allowed to vote. Since universal suffrage came into being the age when men and women could vote was reduced to 18 in 1969, and the Scots seem to want people just out of nappies voting, if it helps them get their way, though it hasn't yet!
Anyway, you can register to vote and see more information at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote - If you are unsure whether you are registered under the new system, contact Hastings Borough Council electoral services on 01424 451087.
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