Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether election pilots will be held in the local authorities which had local elections cancelled, but which are being reinstated.

The Government committed in its manifesto to encourage greater participation in democracy. To support this, the Government is exploring ways to make voting in person more efficient, more convenient, and better aligned with the expectations of today’s electors.

Orders designating the pilots for May 2026 have been signed and shared with participating local authorities and the Electoral Commission. I refer the Rt. Hon Member to the Written Ministerial Statement made yesterday, which details participating local authorities and nature of each pilot.

No flexible voting pilots are due to be held in local authority areas where elections due to run in May 2026 were previously postponed.