Elections: Proof of Identity

21 Oct 2021

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Cat Smith received a response to a question they put to the government

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to the Government's voter ID plans, whether student IDs covered by the PASS scheme will be accepted as...

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Clause 14 - Membership of the Speaker’s Committee

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I have to say, as a Member of the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, that I do not think there is any risk of the Government losing a vote on that Committee, given the...

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Clause 14 - Membership of the Speaker’s Committee

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

Amendment 65 prevents a situation in which the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission can have a majority from the governing party in the House of Commons. The committee currently...

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Clause 14 - Membership of the Speaker’s Committee

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I beg to move amendment 66, in clause 14, page 25, line 12, a t the beginning insert— “(A1) In section 2 of PPERA (Speaker’s Committee), after...

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Clause 13 - Examination of duty to have regard to strategy and policy statement

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

The Opposition broadly support the principle of expanding scrutiny of the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission. However, we have some issues with the membership, which we will...

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Clause 12 - Strategy and policy statement

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

indicated dissent.

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Clause 12 - Strategy and policy statement

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I thank the Minister for giving way on that point, because I am the only member of the Committee who is also a member of the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission. I agree that...

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Clause 12 - Strategy and policy statement

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I am very clear about this. I will come to it later in my remarks in more detail, but, roughly speaking, regulation of the Electoral Commission regulates elections in which Governments are...

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Clause 12 - Strategy and policy statement

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

Part 3 of the Bill, and clause 12 in particular, represent a deeply worrying step for our democracy, and I do not say that lightly. It is not fair on any Government. It might be the...

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Clause 12 - Strategy and policy statement

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I do wish to push the amendment to a vote. I am disappointed by the Minister’s response. I hope she might consider further. She referred to the fact that the legislative consent motions...

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Clause 12 - Strategy and policy statement

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

Sir Edward, given that we are taking amendments 61 and 75 together, I would like to speak to the amendment that appears in my name and those of my hon. Friends. I thought the hon. Member for...

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Clause 11 - Voting and candidacy rights of EU citizens

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

The Labour party strongly believes that all those who are subject to local laws and politics have a claim to political representation. Essentially, anyone who lives in a local area and uses...

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Clause 10 - Extension of franchise for parliamentary elections: British citizens overseas

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I feel that the Committee has already heard my views on this clause, so I have nothing further to add.

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Clause 10 - Extension of franchise for parliamentary elections: British citizens overseas

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I may have forgotten the first part of the hon. Gentleman’s intervention; I ask his forgiveness if I do not respond to that. If the hon. Gentleman put out a Facebook ask to his overseas...

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Clause 10 - Extension of franchise for parliamentary elections: British citizens overseas

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

We were right to do that in that Committee. I am conscious that I am veering into discussing an Act not related to this Bill Committee, so I will be careful in what I say and how I frame this....

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Clause 10 - Extension of franchise for parliamentary elections: British citizens overseas

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I will; I decided to respond to his point in the hope that he would intervene on me so that we could further this exciting debate.

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Clause 10 - Extension of franchise for parliamentary elections: British citizens overseas

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I suppose this is the opportunity to respond to the hon. Member for Heywood and Middleton, who picked up on the issue of overseas constituencies being quite large. He gave the example of the...

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Clause 10 - Extension of franchise for parliamentary elections: British citizens overseas

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

Amendments 85 and 86 are on a report on awareness of overseas electors and a report on the effects of the number of registered electors. These two amendments ask the Government to provide crucial...

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Clause 10 - Extension of franchise for parliamentary elections: British citizens overseas

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

I beg to move amendment 85, in clause 10, page 18, line 31, a t end insert— “1F Report on awareness of how to participate in elections as an overseas...

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Clause 10 - Extension of franchise for parliamentary elections: British citizens overseas

21 Oct 2021

Elections Bill

Cat Smith made a speech in a committee scrutinising a proposed law

Obviously, I am shocked that the Minister has not accepted my amendment. [Laughter.] That does not get away from the fact that we have a real problem with overseas electors not being able to cast...

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