Changes to General Election system are rejected by MPs

Jan 22 2010 by Stuart Wilson, Ayrshire Post (main ed)

GENERAL election counts could be delayed 24 hours if a new plan is given the green light.

Officials in South Ayrshire want to scrap the traditional vote counting system.

Under new proposals, ballot boxes would stay shut when the polls close at 10pm.

And counting wouldn’t begin at Ayr’s Citadel until the following morning.

Vote chiefs insist the move is essential to cut down on postal voting fraud.

But the proposal has been met with an angry reaction by MPs, who say the overnight count is part of democracy.

Brian Donohoe, whose Central Ayrshire constituency is counted at the Citadel, wants no part of any change.

He said: “In my view this is a silly proposal and I am sure I will not be alone amongst candidates in utterly rejecting it.

“The voting public has a right to know the results of any ballot at the earliest possible opportunity in order to minimise uncertainty and to maintain the uninterrupted running of our democratic system.

“Thousands of candidates will be perfectly willing to stay up all night, and indeed many thousands of voters will be up most of the night watching the results on television.

“I will now be making representations to North Ayrshire Council, in the event that South Ayrshire Council determines it cannot perform the count at the traditional time.

“I’m sure we’ll be more than happy to do it at the Magnum if they don’t want to at the Citadel.”

Returning officers across Scotland have been asked to consider if the new proposal would be a winner for them.

And South Ayrshire’s officer, David Anderson, is proposing the change.

But Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock MP Sandra Osborne is another who’s dead against the idea.

She insisted: “There is a well established precedent for overnight counting in Ayrshire, Scotland and throughout the UK.

“If this was to be departed from it should be by decision of the government and applied everywhere.

“Arguments relating to staff fatigue, the need for accuracy, recounts etc are frankly all red herrings.

“These are not new issues and I am not aware of inaccurate counts in the past.”

Mr Anderson, who is also chief executive of South Ayrshire Council, insists nothing is set in stone regarding a change.

He said: “Like all returning officers and local authorities across Scotland, we are currently being consulted on options regarding this year’s general election count and we have asked our local MPs for their views.

“Our focus and priority will be on delivering a safe, secure and accurate count here in South Ayrshire.

“At this time, no final decision has been made regarding the timing of our count and we will provide a response to the Interim Electoral Management Board for Scotland’s consultation in due course.”