Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his proposals to require candidates to provide identification to nominate, whether this will require the same identification requirements as needed to vote in person at a polling station.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Following Royal Assent for the Representation of the People Bill 2026, the Government will bring forward regulations in due course to set out the detailed provisions.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 20 April 2026, to Question 125733, on Political Parties: Donors, how political parties and regulated donees will be required to verify the revenue statements provided in the cases of donations from small, micro and unlimited companies.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Any revenue statements provided for small, micro and unlimited companies, in the place of publicly available accounts, must be prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting practise. Any revenue for that financial year that cannot be determined must be disregarded.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to the answer of 11 March 2026 to Question 118513 on Identity Cards: Northern Ireland, why it is detrimental to have the electoral ID used as a form of secondary identification by citizens in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The intended purpose of the Northern Ireland electoral ID card is for an elector to be able to prove their identity when voting. The Electoral Office for Northern Ireland (EONI) produces the cards. It is not the responsibility of EONI to provide a secondary identification service; nor are they resourced to do so.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government in the Third Sitting of the Public Bill Committee for the Representation of the People Bill on 24 March 2026, Official Report, Column 126, if he will publish the Ministerial reply on children in secure care.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As indicated during the Public Bill Committee debate on 24 March 2026, in response to points raised by the Hon. Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner, I intend to write to him shortly with further details on issues relating to children in secure accommodation. A copy of that correspondence will be deposited in the Libraries of both Houses as soon as it has been sent.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the answer of 18 March 2026 to Question 118899 on Elections: Campaigns, if he will amend (i) legislation and (ii) statutory guidance to ensure that hard copy and digital imprints are in (a) English and (b) another native language of the British Islands.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Transparency around who is promoting campaign material is a key part of equipping people with the tools to scrutinise political messages and make informed decisions in elections and referendums.
Under UK law, printed and digital campaigning material in scope of the rules is required to include the name and address of the promoter of the material and any person on behalf of whom the material is being published. Printed material also requires the name and address of the printer.
The Government has no plans to prescribe the language of imprints. There are already requirements in legislation to ensure the legibility and accessibility of imprints and the Electoral Commission publishes guidance to support campaigners to meet those requirements.
It is an offence to distribute printed or digital election campaign material without a compliant imprint and enforcement is a matter for the police or the Electoral Commission.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Parliamentary Parties Panel has been consulted by his department on how the Government intends to respond to the Rycroft review report; and how the Government plans implement the proposals that the Government has already accepted from the review.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government has had discussions with the Electoral Commission’s Parliamentary Parties Panel to seek their views on the recommendations made in the Rycroft Review and the practicalities around implementing them.
The Government is committed to responding formally and in full to the Rycroft Review in advance of the Commons report stage of the Representation of the People Bill. As part of this, the Government will continue to engage across the sector, including with the Parliamentary Parties Panel.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Public Bill Committee for the Representation of the People Bill, Official Report, Compilation PDF of all Committee Debate sittings so far, 21 April 2026, Column 229, if he will place in the Library a copy of the Ministerial reply.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
As I indicated during the Public Bill Committee debate on 24 March 2026, in response to points raised by the Hon. Member for Hamble Valley, I intend to write to him shortly with further details on issues relating to the duty for EROs to notify postal voters that their postal vote is due to expire. A copy of that correspondence will be deposited in the Libraries of both Houses as soon as it has been issued.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer of 20 April 2026 to Question 124675 on political donations, whether donations to Irish political parties, where passed on to Northern Ireland parties or accounting units, will be subject to the £100,000 overseas electors cap.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The statutory framework for donations to UK political parties explicitly provides for Northern Ireland parties to receive donations from eligible people and organisations based in Ireland. Donations to Northern Ireland parties from eligible Irish sources are regulated by the Electoral Commission. Rules on donations to Irish political parties are a matter for the Irish Government.
These provisions are consistent with the principles set out in the Good Friday Agreement, particularly those relating to equality and respect for the different political traditions on the island of Ireland.
Separately, the Government has set out its intention to legislate in relation to donations from overseas electors to political parties in the UK. This includes overseas electors from Northern Ireland and donations to Northern Ireland political parties.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his department has made of the potential impact of biraderi networks on levels of electoral fraud.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government is clear that it is, and always will be, an absolute priority to protect our democratic and electoral processes. Security in democratic processes is paramount, and the Government has systems in place to ensure the integrity of its elections. The UK’s elections, both national and local, remain safe and secure.
We continue to work with the Electoral Commission, policing partners and the elections sector to ensure that polls are delivered as effectively and securely as possible. Every eligible elector should be able to cast their vote with confidence in the integrity of the process and without interference. Electoral fraud has no place in our democracy and anyone who has any concerns about the conduct of a poll should contact the Returning Officer or the police.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to consider (a) a uniform publication of local election results by local authorities and (b) an official central repository of local election results.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government does not have any current plans to introduce a uniform approach to the publication of local election results by local authorities. Returning Officers are responsible for publishing election results in their local areas.
Regarding a central repository of local election results, the Government intends to take a power in the Representation of the People Bill 2026 to enable the Government or the Electoral Commission to collect election‑related information, including election results, from relevant officers responsible for the delivery of elections, referendums, petitions and electoral registration. The Government is working with the Electoral Commission to develop the use of this power in a way that improves the accessibility of election information for electors.