Scots may miss out if snap election called
Thousands of people found to have dropped off electoral roll in the past year
Thousands of Scots risk not being able to have their say if a snap general election or second Brexit referendum is called this year, official figures have revealed.
The number of people regis- tered to vote north of the Border in a Westminster election was found to have dropped by 24,800 at the end of 2018 compared with the previous year.
And those registered to vote in a Holyrood or local authority election also declined by 15,300 in the same period, a report published by the National Records of Scotland has shown.
The drop in those registered to vote comes as speculation mounts on the future of Theresa May’s premiership.
The Prime Minister returned from Brussels yesterday to be confronted by reports that most MPS from her own party now want her to quit following another inconclusive week of Brexit talks.
Calls for a second referendum on the UK’S status within the EU are also refusing to die down, with an online petition demanding Brexit is suspended having been signed by more than 3.5 million times in the past two days.
Registrars noted there has been a slight upturn in the numbers registered to vote since the turn of the century.
There was a drop in 2015 following the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration (IER), which affected the registration of students.
Prior to the introduction of IER, block registration was permitted, particularly for students in halls of residence.
Since the drop in 2015, electorates in Scotland have generally increased, which registrars attribute to the heightened period of electoral activity seen over the past few years. Voters have gone to the polls on four occasions since May 2016.
Willie Sullivan, senior director at the Electoral Reform Society, said: “The fall in 2018 is the latest evidence in a pattern of disengagement. At a time of political volatility, when a Westminster election could happen at any time, it’s more important than ever that our politics and democracy are arranged to give as many people as possible a democratic voice.
“We suggest the Scottish Government modernise our registration system, removing barriers to registering and finding new ways of engaging people in the democratic system.
“Giving people the chance to easily ‘opt-in’ to the electoral register whenever they interact with a government service could be just one way to ensure that nobody is prevented from voting.”
Meanwhile, Scottish Labour MP Danielle Rowley expressed frustration yesterdayafteranamendmenttothe Overseas Electors Bill, calling for the franchise to be extended to 16- and 17-year-olds across the UK, was not able to be debated after one MP filibustered, speaking for more than two hours. The voting age was lowered for Holyrood elections in 2016, but remains 18 for Westminster elections.