The Absent Voting at Scottish Local Government Elections (Provision of Personal Identifiers) Regulations 2009

Requiring personal identifiers from existing absent voters

12.—(1) A registration officer may send a notice in writing to any existing absent voter requiring that voter to provide to the registration officer, within 6 weeks from the date of sending the notice, a specimen of the absent voter’s signature and the absent voter’s date of birth (“the required personal identifiers”) in accordance with this Part.

(2) The notice must be sent by the registration officer to the current or last known address of the absent voter.

(3) The registration officer must, if the voter has not responded to the notice within 3 weeks from the date on which the notice was sent, as soon as practicable send a copy of the notice to the absent voter.

(4) Where a notice or copy of a notice is sent by post, the registration officer may use–

(a) a universal postal service provider; or

(b) a commercial delivery firm,

and postage shall be prepaid.

(5) A notice or copy of a notice sent to an existing absent voter in accordance with this Part must be accompanied by a pre-addressed reply envelope and, in the case of any notice sent to an address within the United Kingdom, return postage shall be prepaid.

(6) Where a registration officer has been provided with the required personal identifiers under–

(a) the Representation of the People (Scotland) Regulations 2001(1);

(b) the Absent Voting (Transitional Provisions) (Scotland) Regulations 2008(2);

(c) the Scottish Parliament (Elections etc.) Order 2007(3); or

(d) the Scottish Parliament (Elections etc.) Amendment Order 2008(4),

before the date specified in accordance with regulation 13(2)(d) of these Regulations in the notice sent to the absent voter, the officer may use them for the purposes of local government elections and records kept in connection with such elections.

(1)

S.I. 2001/497.

(2)

S.I. 2008/48.

(3)

S.I. 2007/937.

(4)

S.I. 2008/307.