The Parish and Community Meetings (Polls) Rules 1987

Attendance at counting of votes

26.—(1) The returning officer shall make arrangements for counting the votes in the presence of the counting agents as soon as practicable after the close of the poll, and shall give to the counting agents notice in writing of the time and place at which he will begin to count the votes.

(2) No person other than–

(a) the returning officer and his clerks,

(b) where the poll is taken on the question of appointment to any office, the candidates and their wives or husbands,

(c) where the poll is taken on any other question, the proposer of the resolution in respect of which the poll is taken,

(d) the counting agents,

may be present at the counting of the votes, unless permitted by the returning officer to attend.

(3) A person not entitled to attend at the counting of the votes shall not be permitted to do so by the returning officer unless he is satisfied that the efficient counting of the votes will not be impeded.

(4) The returning officer shall give the counting agents all such reasonable facilities for overseeing the proceedings, and all such information with respect to them, as he can give them consistently with the orderly conduct of the proceedings and the discharge of his duties in connection with them.

(5) In particular, where the votes are counted by–

(a) sorting the ballot papers according to the candidate for whom the vote is given and then counting the number of ballot papers for each candidate, or

(b) sorting the ballot papers according to votes for or against the question and then counting the number of ballot papers in each category,

the counting agents or the person referred to in paragraph (2)(c) above shall be entitled to satisfy themselves that the ballot papers are correctly sorted.