Explanatory note

This Order amends the Police and Crime Commissioner Elections Order 2012 (S.I. 2012/1917) (“2012 Order”) and the Police and Crime Commissioner Elections (Functions of Returning Officers) Regulations 2012 (S.I. 2012/1918) (“2012 Regulations”) for the most part to make provision for combination of police and crime commissioner elections with elections for the National Assembly for Wales. By virtue of article 16A of the National Assembly for Wales (Representation of the People) Order 2007 (S.I. 2007/236), where the polls at an ordinary police and crime commissioner election (“a PCC election”) and a general election of the Assembly are to be taken on the same day they must be taken together (or “combined”). Article 16A will be inserted by the National Assembly for Wales (Representation of the People) (Amendment) Order 2016.

Articles 3 to 6 amend the 2012 Order. The 2012 Order already makes provision for combination of PCC elections and various other elections and referendums and the provisions that apply to those combined elections and, in particular the modifications to the PCC elections rules, are set out in Schedule 4. Article 4 inserts new article 13A which applies those modified rules to combined PCC and Assembly elections, further modifying them where necessary (see below).

Article 5 amends paragraph 29 of Schedule 2 to the 2012 Order to enable the issue and receipt of postal ballot papers at a combined PCC and Assembly election to be taken together if the returning officers concerned agree. It also amends paragraph 59 to require a separate statement of the number of postal ballot papers issued to be completed (whether or not issue and receipt is taken together).

Article 6 inserts a new Part 5 in Schedule 4 to the 2012 Order (combination of polls). It applies Parts 3 and 4 of that Schedule, which modify the PCC elections rules, to combined PCC and Assembly elections with the further modifications set out in Part 5.

Articles 8 and 9 amend the 2012 Regulations. These Regulations confer functions on local returning officers in respect of the voting area for which they are the local returning officer. For Wales the voting areas (as provided for in regulation 2) are counties or county boroughs. Article 8 amends regulation 2 such that where there is to be a combined ordinary PCC election and general Assembly election, the voting areas for the purposes of the PCC elections in Wales are the Assembly constituencies. As an Assembly constituency may fall partly within one county or county borough and partly within another, article 9 inserts new regulation 2A to provide that the returning officer for that voting area (or constituency) is to be the local returning officer who is the constituency returning officer for that Assembly constituency.

Article 11 amends the PCC elections rules. Paragraph (2) amends the timetable to make specific provision for when objections to nominations may be made. Paragraphs (3)(b) and (4) both make provision for when a candidate is nominated by more than one nomination paper. The existing rules contain conflicting provisions and these amendments resolve those. A candidate may be nominated by more than one nomination paper, but where she or he is, the particulars to be included on the statement of persons nominated are those from the paper selected by the candidate, or in default of the candidate, the returning officer. Paragraph (5) amends rule 31 to make clear that the period of 5 days’ notice required to be given of the appointment of polling and counting officers is calculated so as to exclude weekends and public and bank holidays. Paragraph (6) amends the nomination form to reflect that a voting area may be an Assembly constituency where the polls at a PCC election and Assembly election are combined and also inserts a nomination form in Welsh.

Article 12 makes a consequential amendment to paragraphs 16 and 17 of Schedule 4 to reflect the further modifications made to those paragraphs by article 6.

An impact assessment has not been prepared for this instrument as no impact on the voluntary or private sectors is foreseen.