Question

To ask the hon. Member for City of Chester, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, whether the Commission made an assessment of the extent to which the Independent Green Voice’s description as Organic Green Scotland on the Scottish parliamentary election regional listing ballot paper represented the key objective of that party.

Parties have the option to register descriptions which can appear on the ballot paper. The Commission, as the registrar for political parties, must assess whether a party's description meet requirements set out in law. Where an application to register a description meets the legal requirements, it must be registered.

There is no requirement in law for a party's descriptions to reflect its policies and objectives. As such, this is not a consideration when the Commission assesses an application to register a description, and it is not a basis on which a description could be refused.