Representation of the People Regulations 1983
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 1983/435 |
1983 No. 435
REPRESENTATION OF THE PEOPLE
The Representation of the People Regulations 198314thFebruary 1983
22ndFebruary 1983
1stApril 1983
ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS
PART I
GENERAL
1. Citation, commencement and extent.
2. Revocation and savings.
3. Interpretation.
4. Constituencies not wholly within a district or London borough.
PART II
VOTERS REGISTERED BY VIRTUE OF A SERVICE OR PATIENT'S DECLARATION
5. Qualification for Crown servant.
6. Contents of service declaration.
7. Service declaration by Crown servants, British Council employees and spouses.
8. Transmission of service declaration.
9. Service declaration by person about to leave the United Kingdom.
10. Patient's declaration.
11. Invalid service or patient's declaration.
12. Service declaration ceasing to be in force.
PART III
REGISTRATION
The Register
13. Separate part of register for each parliamentary polling district.
14. Separate letter for each parliamentary polling district.
15. Order of names.
16. Marking of names.
The Electors Lists
17. Form and content of electors lists.
18. Publication of the electors lists.
Claims and Objections
19. Notice of claims and objections.
20. Time for making claims and objections.
21. Form of claims and objections.
22. Entry and preliminary disposal of claims and objections.
23. Hearing of claims and objections.
24. Corrections to the electors lists.
25. Other corrections to the electors lists.
Publication and Sale of the Register
26. Publication of register.
27. Information about electors.
28. Free copies of register.
29. Sale of register.
Supplementary
30. Declaration as to age and nationality.
31. Information from householders.
32. Adaptation of electors lists and register in consequence of altered polling districts.
33. Corrupt and illegal practices list.
Alterations to Published Register
34. Claims for inclusion in register of electors and objections thereto.
35. Preliminary disposal of claims and objections made under Regulation 34.
36. Hearing of claims and objections made under Regulation 34.
37. Correction of register.
PART IV
ABSENT VOTERS, PROXIES AND POSTAL PROXIES
38. Application to be treated as an absent voter.
39. Application to vote by proxy.
40. Appointment of proxy.
41. Proxy paper.
42. Cancellation of proxy appointment.
43. Application by proxy to vote by post.
44. Disregard of applications.
45. Records and lists of absent voters, proxies and postal proxies.
46. Marked register of electors for polling stations.
47. Certificate of employment.
PART V
ISSUE AND RECEIPT OF POSTAL BALLOT PAPERS
Interpretation
48. Interpretation of Part V.
Issue of Postal Ballot Papers
49. Form of postal ballot paper.
50. Form of declaration of identity.
51. Persons entitled to be present at issue and receipt of postal ballot papers.
52. Declaration of secrecy.
53. Notice of issue of postal ballot papers.
54. Marking of postal ballot paper.
55. Refusal to issue postal ballot paper.
56. Ballot paper envelope.
57. Delivery of postal ballot papers to post office.
58. Provision of postal voters' ballot box.
59. Sealing up of special lists and counterfoils.
60. Spoilt postal ballot paper.
Receipt of Postal Ballot Papers
61. Receipt of covering envelope.
62. Opening of postal voters' ballot box.
63. Opening of covering envelopes.
64. Sealing up of rejected votes and declarations of identity.
65. Opening of ballot paper envelopes.
66. Abandoned poll.
67. Forwarding of documents.
PART VI
SUPPLEMENTARY
68. Appeals.
69. Official poll card at parliamentary elections.
70. Return and declaration of election expenses.
71. Forms.
72. Sending of notices, etc.
73. Publication of documents.
74. Misnomers.
75. Time.
76. Penalties.
Schedule 1 Enabling Powers.
Schedule 2 Revocations.
Schedule 3 Forms.
In exercise of the powers conferred upon me by the provisions of the Representation of the People Act 1983(a) specified in Schedule 1 to these Regulations, I hereby make the following Regulations:—
PART I
GENERAL
Citation, commencement and extent
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Representation of the People Regulations 1983.
(2) These Regulations shall, subject to their having been approved by resolution of each House of Parliament, come into operation on 1st April 1983.
(3) These Regulations shall not extend to Scotland or Northern Ireland.
Revocation and savings
2. The Regulations specified in Schedule 2 to these Regulations are hereby revoked:
Provided that Regulations 35 and 73 of the Representation of the People Regulations 1974(b) shall continue to have effect in relation to an election, notice of which is published before the coming into operation of these Regulations.
Interpretation
3.—(1) For the purpose of these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—
"the Act of 1983" means the Representation of the People Act 1983;
(a) 1983 c. 2.
(b) S.I. 1974/648.
"British Council employee" means a person employed by the British Council in a post outside the United Kingdom;
"Crown servant" means a person who is employed in a post falling within the class or description set out in Regulation 5;
"patient's declaration" means a declaration made under section 7 of the Act of 1983 by a voluntary mental patient (as defined in section 7(2) of that Act);
"postal proxy" means a person entitled to vote by post as proxy at an election;
"registration officer" means an electoral registration officer;
"service declaration" means a declaration made in accordance with section 15 of the Act of 1983.
(2) A reference in these Regulations to a rule in the elections rules shall be construed as a reference to a rule in the parliamentary elections rules in Schedule 1 to the Act of 1983 or, as the case may be, to the corresponding rule in the Local Elections (Principal Areas) Rules 1973(a).
(3) A claim or objection includes a claim or objection that a letter or date should or should not be placed against a person's name in the electors lists and the register in accordance with Regulation 16 as respects a letter and Regulation 17(2) and section 12(5)(a) of the Act of 1983 as respects a date.
(4) A reference in these Regulations to a Regulation shall be construed as a reference to a Regulation contained in these Regulations.
(5) A reference in these Regulations to a form identified by means of a letter shall be construed as a reference to the form so identified in Schedule 3 to these Regulations.
(6) A reference in these Regulations to the record or list of absent voters, proxies or postal proxies shall be taken as referring to the records or lists required to be kept under Part I of the Act of 1983.
Constituencies not wholly within a district or London borough
4.—(1) Where a constituency is not coterminous with, or wholly situated in, a district or London borough—
(a) the registration officer for any part of the constituency shall, if he is not the acting returning officer for the constituency, consult him concerning the form of the register and of the records and lists of absent voters, proxies and postal proxies, or such parts of them as relate to the constituency, in order to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, they are in a form similar to those in use elsewhere in the constituency;
(b) during the period of a parliamentary election the duties or powers of a registration officer in connection with applications to vote by post or by proxy, or otherwise specified in Part IV of these Regulations, shall, in relation to each part of the constituency, be exercised by the acting returning officer for the constituency.
(a) S.I. 1973/79.
(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(b) above, the expression "period of a parliamentary election" means the period ending with the close of the poll and beginning—
(i) at a general election, with the date of the dissolution of Parliament or any earlier time at which Her Majesty's intention to dissolve Parliament is announced; or
(ii) at a by-election, with the date of the issue of the writ for the election or any earlier date on which a certificate of the vacancy is notified in the London Gazette in accordance with the Recess Elections Act 1975(a).
PART II
VOTERS REGISTERED BY VIRTUE OF A SERVICE OR PATIENT'S DECLARATION
Qualification for Crown servant
5. A person employed in the service of the Crown in a post outside the United Kingdom has a service qualification if he is required to devote his whole working time to the duties of that post and the remuneration of it is paid wholly out of money provided by Parliament.
Contents of service declaration
6.—(1) In addition to the matters specified in paragraphs (a) to (f) of section 16 of the Act of 1983, a service declaration shall state—
(a) the declarant's full name and present address,
(b) the grounds on which the declarant claims a service qualification, and
(c) such of the particulars specified in paragraphs (2), (3) or (4) below as are relevant to the service qualification claimed by the declarant.
(2) Where the declarant claims a service qualification on the grounds that he is a member of the forces (as defined in section 59(1) of the Act of 1983) or the spouse of such a member, the service declaration shall state—
(a) the service (whether naval, military or air forces) in which that member serves,
(b) the rank or rating of that member, and
(c) the service number of that member;
and where that member serves in the military forces, the service declaration shall in addition state the regiment or corps in which he serves.
(3) Where the declarant claims a service qualification on the grounds that he is a Crown servant or the spouse of such a servant, the service declaration shall state—
(a) the name of the Government department in which that servant works, and
(a) 1975 c. 66.
(b) a description of the post of that servant.
(4) Where the declarant claims a service qualification on the grounds that he is a British Council employee or the spouse of such an employee, the service declaration shall state a description of the post...
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