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Electoral Administration Bill

moved Amendment No. 119C:"Page 69, line 5, at beginning insert ““Following receipt of written notification by the Electoral Commission of the intended steps to be taken,””" The noble Lord said: This is rather small fry after our previous big discussion, which we are obviously going to continue. Amendment No. 120A, which is grouped with Amendment No. 119C, would ensure that an ERO had a duty to consider the steps that he could take to encourage electoral participation in a ““reasonable”” light, rather than simply doing so in a way that he thought ““appropriate””. The amendment is intended to ensure that EROs have a positive duty to consider electoral participation. What is thought to be appropriate by one person is far more subjective than what is considered to be reasonable, which is a far more objective measure. The duty to consider what is reasonable would lead EROs also to consider the need to encourage electoral participation not only in terms of their own individual sphere of reference but also in terms of electoral practice across the country, and to get an idea of what others apart from themselves consider to be reasonable and, indeed, what the Electoral Commission suggests is reasonable. I think that this is a sensible amendment. It is tabled in a spirit of encouragement with a view to enabling EROs to undertake their role with the very best practice. I beg to move.