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Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill

My Lords, as I will probably say quite a few times today, as I said in Grand Committee where these amendments were also tabled, under the new arrangements, the Chief Election Officer’s enhanced data sharing powers will replace the canvass as the central means by which he will ensure the accuracy and comprehensiveness of the Northern Ireland register. The provision to hold the canvass every tenth year is the backstop to underpin confidence and provide a safeguard for these new arrangements. It will no longer, however, provide the substantive means of refreshing the register, which will be done on an ongoing basis under the new arrangements set out under Clause 7. So it is not, as one might think from the brief speeches, that we are simply abolishing registration and doing nothing about it because the new arrangements are set out quite clearly under Clause 7. Therefore no advantage would be gained from the canvass being held on a more regular basis, only an unnecessary expenditure of resources. In addition, the clause makes provision for a canvass to be held in any year if the Chief Elections Officer makes a recommendation to the Secretary of State by 15 April that year and the Secretary of State is satisfied that the public interest requires the canvass. Clause 3 also makes clear that the Government’s intention is that there will be a canvass in 2010, by which point we hope that the new arrangements will be fully embedded and everyone will be able to see that. However, should the elections officer feel that a canvass is not necessary at that time in order for him to meet the relevant registration objectives—perhaps on the basis that he feels the register is comprehensive and accurate and would not be improved significantly by the canvass—he would be able to recommend to the Secretary of State that a canvass should not take place in 2010. In the case of such a recommendation—and only in that case—the Secretary of State will be able to make an order to remove the requirement for a canvass in 2010. That decision of the Secretary of State will be subject to approval by each House of Parliament here at Westminster. Canvasses are resource intensive, both in labour and money, and it is only right that the Chief Elections Officer should be able to decide how his resources would be best deployed in determining whether or not a canvass is necessary in 2010—which, of course, is only four years after the final annual canvass as planned under the legislation. In addition, Clause 3 also makes it clear that if there is no canvass in 2010 and one has not been held before the end of 2015, one must be held in 2016, which would of course be 10 years after the final annual canvass proposed under the legislation presently before your Lordships’ House. We think that all the mechanisms in place and the access to information set out in the Bill, but not subject to these amendments, which were debated at some length in Grand Committee, are such that we are confident that the Chief Elections Officer can carry out a comprehensive canvass and keep it up to date using all the means at his or her disposal. This would include checking on the movements of people—the noble Lord, Lord Glentoran, said it is a moving population—which have to be recorded for all kinds of purposes. Whether it is rents for landlords, local authority services and other such matters, the elections officer will have access to that information for that purpose. Of course, he will not have access to medical records and other such matters, but he or she will have access to information to create an accurate register in Northern Ireland and then have the means to keep it up to date. Therefore we do not think these amendments are required.