Local Elections: Pilot Schemes Lord Hardy of Wath asked Her Majesty's Government:What applications they have received from local authorities wanting to run pilot schemes at local elections in May 2000. [HL848] Lord Bassam of Brighton We hope that the Representation of the People Bill will receive Royal Assent in time to allow the first pilot schemes of innovative electoral procedures to be run at local elections in May.Clause 10(11) of the Bill allows for applications to be submitted before the Bill receives Royal Assent.Forty-four local authorities have submitted applications to run 64 pilot schemes.Of these, 21 involve early voting, 14 involve all postal ballots, eight involve electronic voting or counting, seven involve changes to the absent vote arrangements, six involve weekend voting, four involve a mobile ballot box, two involve an extension to polling hours, one involves voter notification, and one involves a freepost facility. Details are set out in the table.Home Office officials will notify local authorities by 14 February whether my right honourable friend the Home Secretary would be minded to approve their applications should the Bill receive Royal Assent in time for schemes to be run in May.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |Local Authority |Number of wards|Application to Pilot | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |1. Amber Valley BC |Whole authority|1. Electronic voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |Whole authority|2. Extend entitlement to postal voting| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |2. Birmingham MBC |Whole authority|Early voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |3. Blackburn with Darwen BC|Whole authority|Early voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |4. Blackpool BC |Whole authority|Early voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |5. Bolton MBC |3 wards |1. All postal voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | |2. Weekend voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |6. Broxbourne BC |12 wards |Electronic counting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |7. Bury MBC |1 ward |1. Electronic voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |Whole authority|2. Early voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |8. Chester CC |Whole authority|Early voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |9. Coventry CC |Whole authority|Early voting | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Local Authority |Number of wards|Application to Pilot | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |10. Doncaster MBC |1 ward |All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |11. Eastleigh BC |15 wards |1. Extension of entitlement to postal vote| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |2. Saturday voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |12. Gateshead MBC |2 wards |All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |13. Gloucester CC |3 wards |Extension of entitlement to postal vote | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |14. Halton BC |2 wards |Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |15. Ipswich BC |2 wards |All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |16. Kingston Upon Hull CC|Whole authority|Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |17. Knowsley MBC |3 wards |Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |18. Leeds CC |Whole authority|Extend hours of polling | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |19. Manchester CC |Whole authority|Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |20. Milton Keynes |3 wards |1. All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |14 wards |2. Extend | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |Whole authority|entitlement to postal vote | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |3. Electronic counting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |21. Mole Valley DC |Whole authority|Extend hours of polling | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |22. North |16 wards |1. Saturday voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Hertfordshire DC | |2. Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |3. Change to absent vote arrangements | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |23. Norwich CC |2 wards |1. All postal ballots | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |2 wards |2. Voting on | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |Whole authority|Sunday (using | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |Whole authority|different hours) | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |3. Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |4. Mobile polling stations | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |24. Pendle DC |Whole authority|Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |25. Plymouth CC |Whole authority|Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |Local Authority |Number of wards|Application to Pilot | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |26. Redditch BC |9 wards |Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |27. Salford MDC |1 ward |1. All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |2 wards |2. Electronic voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |28. Solihul MBC |1 ward |All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |29. St Helens MBC |6 wards |Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |30. Stevenage BC |2 wards |All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |31. Stoke CC |Whole authority|Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |32. Stratford on Avon DC |18 wards |Electronic voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |33. Sunderland CC |8 wards |1. Mobile voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |Whole authority|2. Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |34. Swindon BC |4 wards |All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |35. Telford & Wrekin |2 wards |Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |36. Three Rivers |Whole authority|1. All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |DC | |2. Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |3. Electronic counting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |37. Thurrock C |3 wards |All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |38. Trafford MBC |2 wards |Change to absent vote arrangements | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |39. Wakefield MDC |Whole authority|Weekend voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |40. Warrington BC |22 wards |Electronic voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |41. Watford BC |Whole authority|1. Freepost arrangements as in parliamentary elections| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |2. Weekend voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |3. Early voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |4. Mobile ballot box | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |5. Voter notification | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | |6. Proxy voting deadline extension | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |42. Wigan MBC |3 wards |All postal voting | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |43. Windsor & Maidenhead RB|2 wards |Mobile polling facility | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |44. Wirral |1 ward |All postal voting | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------