Off the register

The news in the Herald and on Tom Harris' blog that more than 100,000 people in Glasgow aren't registered to vote didn't come as a great surprise to me. I know from canvassing various areas of Glasgow that you can go past as many doors as you knock on, as so many people are not on the electoral register. When you knock on the doors, you often find that the name you have on the canvass sheet doesn't match the person living there - sometimes the previous tenant has moved away some years ago.

We get regular reports at the Finance and Audit Scrutiny Committee on voter registration, and the details make glum reading. Despite all households being issued with a voter registration enquiry form, and being able to register by phone or online, many still choose not to do bother.

According to their records, the Council got the following returns:

300,002 Enquiry Forms issued on 1 August 2009
130,309 forms returned 43% return

169,693 First Reminders issued on 7 September 2009
46,152 forms returned 59% return

130,633 Second Reminders issued on 5 October 2009
42,540 returned 73% return

After the last tranche, the Council tries to visit or phone as many of the remaining people as possible. They run matches against asylum seekers, school pupils, death certificates, students, properties due for demolition, Housing Benefit Claimants, Council Tax, Registers of Scotland and seek help from the Glasgow City Council Black & Minority Ethnic Groups Directory. They've done roadshows and visited various groups. Evidently, it's still not enough.

There are many reasons why people don't register - lack of knowledge, lack of interest, or even deliberate disengagement. There are historical reasons - people who fear unpaid Poll Tax catching up on them - and factors like students only registering at home when they are also eligible to register in their place of residence. It's pretty staggering that this amounts to 100,000 people taking no part in the democracy that governs them or even voting for the Council who provides them with a service.

I suppose political parties are equally culpable for lack of people on the register. It's a apathetic circle: if people aren't on the register, we tend not to visit them. They then think politicians aren't interested in them, and continue to disengage.

If we find people by chance, and they're interested in registering, a form will be sent to them. Some people have genuinely overlooked registering despite the notifications, and appreciate it being drawn to their attention; I get the impression that they are a minority.

There's a lot of talk about people actively deciding not to vote - but active abstention still allows a minority of people to elect representatives. Some politicians would only care that they got elected, never mind the mandate, so active abstention will make no impact on them whatsoever.

Low turnouts merely cause people to wring their hands and say something must be done. They'll talk for a while about reform and debate the merits of compulsory voting. Then things will continue as usual.

Far better, in my view, to look at the candidates, track them down, speak to them, and find out which of them is a decent human being and would represent your views. Speak to your neighbours, family, friends at the pub about it. Staying at home and not voting changes absolutely nothing. Mass participation has the power to effect change.


If you're in Glasgow, and want to register, the forms are available online here: please do your bit, democracy needs you!