Electoral Administration Bill

We had quite an interesting debate, not far from this subject, on the amendments of the noble Lord, Lord Norton of Louth. I took away the issue of opting in and opting out; I have responsibility for data protection, and we keep this issue under review. People tend to opt out but there are increasing moves for people to opt in. That is an issue we might consider further. This clause is about the marked register, which is different, and available only in very set circumstances which Members of the Committee are probably even more familiar with than I am. The marked register proposals are different from the ordinary register proposals where we have clear regulations. The Representation of the People (Amendment) Regulations 2002 tightened up access to the register by establishing a new framework giving access to the supply and sale of electoral registers. It addressed privacy and security concerns arising from the possible misuse of data on the register, and took into account the ramifications of the Robertson case, where the High Court had found that the use of registers for marketing purposes without first giving individual electors the right to object was in breach of data protection and human rights legislation. We know what happened as a consequence of that—two versions are available. The full register has details of all registered electors and is available for inspection by members of the public under supervision. It can be sold and supplied to certain specified persons and bodies, political parties, MPs, certain officeholders and candidates for electoral purposes; to law enforcement agencies and government departments for the prevention and detection of crime and for criminal law enforcement purposes; to credit reference agencies for credit-checking purposes and the prevention of money laundering and fraud; and to certain other bodies, such as the British Library and the Office for National Statistics, for specified purposes. The edited register—because people have the right not to be on it—is available for sale to anyone for any purpose. As I indicated, we are looking at the opt-in opt-out provision. We believe that as things stand, taking into account the debate that we have already had and the things that we will look at, we have got this right in the regulations. The marked register is different because we are very clear that that is available only in certain circumstances. It is perhaps worth saying that those involved in political campaigning, and candidates themselves, find the marked register an invaluable campaigning tool. Finally, the Joint Committee on Human Rights, in its report on the Bill, found that the disclosure of the marked register to political parties and candidates is in principle capable of justification under the convention. Clause 42 makes specific provision for them to be supplied at non-parliamentary elections, including the newly created marked postal voters list. We think that we have got the regulations right; we are delighted that the Joint Committee on Human Rights has recognised the value of the marked register and that it is appropriate; and we hope on that basis that the noble Baroness will feel able to withdraw her amendment.