New measures expected to be announced in the Queen’s Speech next
week will deliver on a manifesto commitment to crack down on the
potential for different forms of voter fraud and intimidation,
further strengthening the integrity of UK elections.
Tighter rules for absent voting and steps to prevent voter
intimidation will come alongside wider measures to make sure our
elections remain secure, modern, fair, inclusive and transparent.
Cases such as the 2014 Mayoral election in Tower Hamlets, which
was declared void due to corrupt and illegal practices, have
shown that there are key vulnerabilities in the electoral system
that leave it open to abuse. The 2016 independent review of
electoral fraud carried out by found that there is a risk of postal votes being
appropriated and stolen, or for people to be coerced into
appointing a proxy in our current processes.
The measures set to be announced next week will include action to
ban postal vote harvesting by limiting the number of postal votes
that a person can hand in at a polling station on behalf of
others.
Plans to toughen up action against intimidation of voters will
also be laid out, to prevent people from being coerced or
intimidated into giving up control over their vote. This is
expected to include listing intimidation of voters as a form of
undue influence in law for the first time.
Minister for the Constitution and Devolution, said:
“Stealing someone’s vote is stealing their voice. Fraud, and the
intent to intimidate or coerce a voter, are crimes. So this
government is stamping out the space for such damage to take
place in our elections.”
Further steps to stamp out fraud and to tighten up rules around
postal and proxy votes will also be set out next week.
