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Electoral Administration Bill

I am an old campaigner and, in the old days, as the Minister will know, we used to publish B and C lists. The whole concept of the register was open to scrutiny by everybody. That was one of the ways in which we maintained a fairness and credibility in the register of electors, which I was sorry to see go. As I understand it—there might be a built-in opportunity to do this—most electoral registration officers are willing to take comment if people feel that a mistake has been made. In that respect, my concern is that five days is just not enough time to go through that process. We have already argued that it is right and proper that everybody should have the right to vote, but it is equally right and proper that the register, which is a public document, should be seen to be fair and open to scrutiny. Enough time should be allowed for that scrutiny to take place, and some mechanism should be available to amend the register if mistakes are made. I therefore appeal for a longer period than that suggested in the Bill.