Review of the 2007 elections to the Scottish Parliament and local government by the Electoral Commission Terms of reference and scope of the review
1. On 3 May 2007 combined elections were held in Scotland; a general election to the Scottish Parliament and full elections to all 32 of Scotland’s local councils. These elections are fixed term and were fully combined under electoral law. 2. Elections in the United Kingdom are not run by the Electoral Commission but rather are the responsibility of individual, independent Returning Officers, who in Great Britain are senior officials of local government. 3. Electoral policy and law is the responsibility of the relevant Government department. In Scotland this responsibility was split as part of the devolution settlement. Policy and law for the Scottish Parliament remains with the UK Government and is handled by the Scotland Office in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice (formerly the Department for Constitutional Affairs). Policy and law for Scottish local elections is an entirely devolved matter handled by the Scottish Executive. 4. The Electoral Commission has a statutory duty1 to report on the administration of the Scottish Parliamentary elections and has been asked by the Scottish Executive2 to report on the Scottish local elections. The Commission had planned to report on these elections by early summer 2007. 5. During the election itself, and most especially during the overnight counting process on 3-4 May, several issues relating to the administration of the election were of concern to the Commission, political parties and observers. These were covered extensively by Scottish, UK and international media. Following internal discussion, the Commission announced on 4 May that it would expand its statutory report to include a full, independent review of the elections in Scotland. In particular, we announced an examination of “the high number of rejected ballots; the electronic counting process; and the arrangements for postal voting”.
1 2
Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, section 5 As permitted by Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, section 10
6. The Commission’s announcement stressed the independent nature of the review. Whilst the Commission has no operational responsibilities in the running of the elections, our advisory and support roles in Scotland have been extensive and have involved both Commissioners and Commission staff. 7. The Commission has established an external review into certain aspects of the administration of the 3 May 2007 Scottish elections. We have appointed Mr Ron Gould CM to head the review – to be known as the ‘reviewer’ – to provide a definitive view of the problems experienced and propose remedies for the future.
Scope of work
8. The Commission’s ‘standard’ statutory report was designed to report on various aspects of the administration of the election and to be similar in style, coverage and length to reports also under preparation on the March 2007 Northern Ireland elections and the May 2007 Welsh elections. These reports were planned to be shorter and more focused on the administration of the election than reports on the 2003 devolved institution elections. In doing so the Commission will not influence the content of the report from the reviewer. 9. The reviewer is expected to examine: • • • • • • • the reasons for the high number of rejected ballots; the electronic counting process and it’s impact on the final results; the arrangements for the production and dispatch of postal ballot packs; the decision to combine3 the Parliamentary and local government elections; the decision to electronically count both the local and the Parliamentary ballot papers; Where the decision making in relation to these issues did take place and where it should have, either according to law or to responsibility; the role of the Commission itself in the preparations for the elections;
10. The reviewer would be expected to define the steps they find necessary to reach conclusions on the issues.
Support to the Review
11. Logistical, administrative and other support will be available to the reviewer on terms to be agreed on appointment. Such support may be
3
Combination has a specific meaning in UK electoral law and combination leads to a specified series of events
from within the resources of the Commission or from external sources selected by the reviewer. 12. Office accommodation will be provided. 13. All other resources including IT equipment etc will be provided to meet the reviewer’s requirements. 14. All expenditure will be met by the Commission. 15. The following information or support is also available to the reviewer. 16. The available statistics as to rejected ballot papers are already being gathered. The Commission does not have legal powers to re-examine the rejected ballot papers to reach further statistical conclusions. External counsel’s opinion has confirmed the Commission’s own legal view on this matter. Discussions can be had with the e-counting supplier to ascertain whether additional interrogation would yield any more useful data. Desk research into UK and international experience for comparison is underway by Commission staff. The Commission also has public opinion research in the field in Scotland under the management of an expert public opinion company as well as research into electors’ views and comprehension from before the election. 17. The e-counting process was also planned to be reviewed, and the Commission has under contract a technical expert who was present at the count in Glasgow. This expert will be available to assist the reviewer in defining possible paths of inquiry. The reviewer would be expected to head the work in this area with additional technical consultancy support provided through the Commission’s existing contracts if required. The Commission has reported on e-counting in the past. 18. The arrangements for postal voting were already to be covered in the statutory report and the examination should look at the causes of delays in printing and dispatching the postal ballot packs to electors. Feedback and information can be gathered by the Commission from Returning Officers, printers, Royal Mail and the political parties. If required Commission staff can analyse this material and then present issues for discussion with the reviewer. The Commission has considerable experience in this area which will be available to the reviewer in reaching conclusions. 19. All the Commission’s research materials relating to Scotland will be made available to the reviewer.
Method of review
20. The reviewer will be able to define their own modes of review, which may include:
•
• • •
Interviews with Commission staff, Members of Government and Government officials, Returning Officers, electoral administrators, Commission contractors, political parties, candidates and agents, the e-counting supplier, printers and other suppliers; Public meetings Seeking written submissions Desk research and analysis
21. The reviewer will have no statutory powers to require attendance of individuals or access to documents.
Deliverables and timelines
22. The exact timelines will be agreed with the reviewer on appointment but the Commission wishes to publish its report in the summer of 2007. 23. The reviewer will need to deliver: • A report, or series of sub-reports, that cover the topics outlined above and any additional topics that the reviewer proposes to the Commission during the review. Reports should include where relevant a narrative of the process under review, lessons learned from the review and any recommendations for the future (whether for the Commission, Government or electoral administration) A de-brief, or series of de-briefs, with Commissioners and senior staff during the review as agreed A presentation to Scottish stakeholders on the completion of the review
• •
24. The point of contact for the reviewer will be the Director of Electoral Administration and Boundaries in the Commission’s London office. 25. The reviewer will be independent in their work and conclusions. Electoral Commission May 2007