Regulation 25 Questions to be put to persons signing the petitionI1C1
United Kingdom
At the time a person applies for a signing sheet (but not afterwards), the questions specified in the second column of the following table may be put by the petition clerk to a person who is mentioned in the first column (subject to paragraph (3)).
Table
| Person applying for signing sheet | Questions |
|---|---|
| 1. A person applying as an elector | F1(za) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your name?” (zb) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your address?” (a) “Are you the person registered in the register for this petition as follows (read out the whole entry from the register)?” (b) “Have you already signed the petition, here or elsewhere, otherwise than as a proxy for some other person?” (c) At a petition held in Northern Ireland, “What is your date of birth?” |
| 2. A person applying as a proxy | (za) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your name?” (zb) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your address?” (a) “Are you the person whose name appears as A.B. in the list of proxies for this petition?” (b) “Have you already signed the petition here or elsewhere, as a proxy on behalf of C.D.?” F2(c) “Have you already signed this petition as a proxy, whether here or elsewhere in this constituency, on behalf of four or more persons entitled to sign?” (d) If the person answers question (c) in the negative: “Have you already signed this petition as a proxy, whether here or elsewhere in this constituency, on behalf of two or more persons entitled to sign?” (e) If the person answers question (d) in the affirmative: “Were two or more of the persons on whose behalf you have signed this petition registered in a register of electors otherwise than in pursuance of an overseas elector’s declaration or a service declaration?” (f) If the person answers question (e) in the affirmative: “Is the person (or are the persons) for whom you are signing today registered in a register of electors otherwise than in pursuance of an overseas elector’s declaration or a service declaration?” (g) At a petition held in Northern Ireland: “What is your date of birth?” |
| 3. A person applying as a proxy for an elector with an anonymous entry (instead of the questions at entry 2) | (za) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your name?” (zb) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your address?” (a) “Are you the person entitled to sign as proxy on behalf of the elector whose number in the register is (read out the number from the register)?” (b) “Have you already signed the petition, here or elsewhere, as proxy on behalf of the elector whose number in the register is (read out number from the register)?” F3(c) “Have you already signed this petition as a proxy, whether here or elsewhere in this constituency, on behalf of four or more persons entitled to sign?” (d) If the person answers question (c) in the negative: “Have you already signed this petition as a proxy, whether here or elsewhere in this constituency, on behalf of two or more persons entitled to sign?” (e) If the person answers question (d) in the affirmative: “Were two or more of the persons on whose behalf you have signed this petition registered in a register of electors otherwise than in pursuance of an overseas elector’s declaration or a service declaration?” (f) If the person answers question (e) in the affirmative: “Is the person (or are the persons) for whom you are signing today registered in a register of electors otherwise than in pursuance of an overseas elector’s declaration or a service declaration?” |
| F4. . . | . . . |
| 5. A person applying as an elector in relation to whom there is an entry in the postal signers list | (za) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your name?” (zb) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your address?” (a) “Did you apply to sign the petition by post?” (b) “Why have you not signed the petition by post?” |
| 6. A person applying as proxy who is named in the proxy postal signers list | (za) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your name?” (zb) At a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, “What is your address?” (a) “Did you apply to sign the petition by post as proxy?” (b) “Why have you not signed the petition by post as proxy?” |
In the case of an elector in respect of whom a notice has been issued under section 13BC(6) of the 1983 Act (alteration of registers: recall petition), the references in the questions at entries 1(a) and F53(a) and (b) to reading from the register must be taken as references to reading from that notice.
In the case of an anonymous elector in Northern Ireland, the questions at entry 3 do not apply.
Where at a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland an assistant appointed to assist the petition clerk—
gives a person the required information (see paragraph (6)),
puts a question specified in paragraph (1) to a person, and
decides that the person has failed to answer the question satisfactorily,
the assistant must refer the matter to the petition clerk, who must put the question to the person again.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Where F9... the petition clerk—
gives a person the required information,
puts a question specified in paragraph (1) to the person (whether or not F10, in the case of a petition held in England, Wales or Scotland, following a referral under paragraph (3A)), and
decides that the person has failed to answer the question satisfactorily,
the petition clerk must refuse to deliver a signing sheet to the person (and see regulation 30A (procedure where signing sheet is refused under this paragraph)).
For the purposes of this regulation, a person answers the question “What is your name?” or “What is your address?” satisfactorily if—
where one of those questions is put, the answer matches a name or address (as the case may be) in the register;
where both those questions are put, the answers match a name and address in that register that relate to the same person.
In the case of an elector in respect of whom a notice has been issued under section 13BC(6) of the 1983 Act, the references to the register in paragraph (4B) are to be read as references to the notice issued under section 13BC(6).
Except as authorised by this regulation, no inquiry is to be permitted as to the right of any person to sign the petition F11(and for the purposes of this paragraph, an inquiry relating to the production of identification by a person is not to be regarded as an inquiry as to the right of the person to sign the petition).
For the purposes of this regulation, a person to whom any question is to be put is given “the required information” if the person is first informed that—
a signing sheet will be refused if the person fails to answer each question satisfactorily, and
giving false information may be an offence.
Annotations
Textual amendments
- F1
Words in reg. 25 table inserted (16.1.2023) by The Voter Identification Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1382), regs. 1(3), 75(a) (with reg. 1(6)(7)) (which affecting provision is extended to N.I. (31.10.2023) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1382), regs. 1(2), 13)
- F2
Words in reg. 25 table substituted (31.1.2024) by The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1147), regs. 1(3)(f), 19(4)(a)(i) (with Sch. 2 paras. 31-33, 35, 36, 39)
- F3
Words in reg. 25 table substituted (31.1.2024) by The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1147), regs. 1(3)(f), 19(4)(a)(ii) (with Sch. 2 paras. 31-33, 35, 36, 39)
- F4
Words in reg. 25 table omitted (31.1.2024) by virtue of The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1147), regs. 1(3)(f), 19(4)(a)(iii) (with Sch. 2 paras. 31-33, 35, 36, 39)
- F5
Words in reg. 25(2) substituted (31.1.2024) by The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1147), regs. 1(3)(f), 19(4)(b) (with Sch. 2 paras. 31-33, 35, 36, 39)
- F6
Reg. 25(3A) inserted (16.1.2023) by The Voter Identification Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1382), regs. 1(3), 75(b) (with reg. 1(6)(7)) (which affecting provision is extended to N.I. (31.10.2023) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1382), regs. 1(2), 13)
- F7
Reg. 25(4) omitted (31.10.2023) by virtue of The Representation of the People and Recall Petition (Northern Ireland) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1116), regs. 1(2), 17(2)
- F8
Reg. 25(4A)-(4C) inserted (16.1.2023) by The Voter Identification Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1382), regs. 1(3), 75(d) (with reg. 1(6)(7)) (which affecting provision is extended to N.I. (31.10.2023) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1382), regs. 1(2), 13)
- F9
Words in reg. 25(4A) omitted (31.10.2023) by virtue of The Representation of the People and Recall Petition (Northern Ireland) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1116), regs. 1(2), 17(3)(a)
- F10
Words in reg. 25(4A)(b) inserted (31.10.2023) by The Representation of the People and Recall Petition (Northern Ireland) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1116), regs. 1(2), 17(3)(b)
- F11
Words in reg. 25(5) inserted (16.1.2023) by The Voter Identification Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1382), regs. 1(3), 75(e) (with reg. 1(6)(7)) (which affecting provision is extended to N.I. (31.10.2023) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1382), regs. 1(2), 13)
- F12
Reg. 25(6) inserted (16.1.2023) by The Voter Identification Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1382), regs. 1(3), 75(f) (with reg. 1(6)(7)) (which affecting provision is extended to N.I. (31.10.2023) by The Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1382), regs. 1(2), 13)
Modifications
- C1
Reg. 25 modified (temp.) (31.10.2023) by The Representation of the People (Postal and Proxy Voting etc.) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1147), reg. 1(2), Sch. 2 para. 32(2) (with Sch. 2 para. 31)
Commencement
- I1
Reg. 25 in force at 4.3.2016, see reg. 1