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Proceeding contribution from Richard Shepherd (Conservative) in the House of Commons on Monday, 18 October 2010. It occurred during Debate on bill and Committee of the Whole House (HC) on Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill.


Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill

I do not want to engage in an exchange across the Chamber of the kind that we have just had. I respect the hon. Gentleman's opinions, but it seems that we are talking about a central, small part of an issue: what constitutes British citizenship? It is not as defined in 1947 any more, and there has been a whole series of extensions to that definition. Now, European—not British—citizens can determine how local taxes are arranged in the borough or elsewhere. This is a question that would, frankly, have been startling to many people, certainly when I first came to the House. The numbers are huge: 3 million new British citizens have been created since 1997, and I do not see them returned on the electoral register. It has not leapt by that number. I want to assert the essential concepts of citizenship, because the Bill is, in the end, about our citizenship; it is about voting processes and how we elect a Government, and it explores the idea of a five-year mandatory Parliament. However, the essential issue here is who should vote. That is all it is about.


Secondary information

Type
Proceeding contribution
Reference
516 c702 
Session
2010-12
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
Subjects
Access Disability Accountability Alternative vote Administration Age British nationality Commonwealth British nationals abroad Fees and charges Eligibility Electoral Commission Forms General elections Northern Ireland Private education Referendums Polling stations Scotland Visual impairment Voting methods Schools Young people Reform Wales Voting rights Returning officers
Legislation
Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill 2010-12
Link
View this Proceeding contribution on www.publications.parliament.uk