The 2024 General Election was well run but there are concerns
that the ‘fabric may not hold' if a future election result is
close as the system comes under increasing pressure, a new report
by the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee
(PACAC) finds.
MPs on the Committee were content with the overall administration
of last year's election but highlight a number of challenges for
the sector, such as the complex state of electoral law, a
shrinking number of external suppliers and an increased workload
for electoral administrators.
In a strategy published last
week, the Government said it would attempt to ease the burden on
election workers by extending certain deadlines. The Committee is
supportive of this change but urges the Government to go further
to alleviate pressure on the system and the administrators who
deliver elections.
In its report, the Committee also highlights the issue of
declining turnout. 2024 saw the second lowest General Election
turnout since the introduction of universal suffrage, and there
are an estimated 8 million people missing from the electoral
register.
The Committee finds that the declining turnout is partially due
to the increasing disengagement of young people from the
electoral process and politics more generally. The Chief
Executive of the Electoral Commission, Vijay Ranagarjan, told the
Committee, “About half of young people are not on the register
and do not think it is important to be on the register. They do
not think that engaging in politics is important.” The Committee
concludes a ‘complete overhaul' of political education is needed,
including changes to the curriculum.
The Committee welcomes commitments made by the Government to
create an automated registration system and encourages them to
make this a single register which actively prompts people to
register to vote or update their details. The recommendation will
improve the completeness and accuracy of the electoral register
and allow for more effective use of data to conduct
elections.
With between 770,000 and 1.9 million people estimated to have
been prevented or discouraged from voting because of voter ID,
MPs urge the Government to properly evaluate the effectiveness of
the voter ID requirement policy and improve awareness of the
Voter Authenticity Certificate (VAC) system.
Postal voting has become an increasingly critical part of the
electoral system. The Committee was concerned by the significant
delay to the delivery of ballot packs in Scotland due to a
failure at one supplier. MPs are therefore calling for the ballot
packs to be dispatched on a rolling basis.
Chair of the Public Administration and Constitutional
Affairs Committee, MP,
said:
“The 2024 General Election was a success but we must not be
complacent. I am extremely grateful for all the dedication and
hard work carried out by the electoral staff, administrators,
civil servants and ministers. The work they do is vital for
upholding our democratic system.
“With that being said, our electoral system is at risk of no
longer being able to cope as those running our elections are
asked to do more and more. The Government must face up to these
issues and ensure we continue to have successful elections in the
future. If it does not, the price will be a crisis in our
democratic system and that must be avoided.”
