Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on (1) the annual canvass of electors, and (2) the accuracy of the electoral register.

Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) remain subject to the statutory duties placed on them to deliver the annual canvass and electoral registration. They continue to deliver these essential services despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cabinet Office officials have actively engaged with EROs throughout the course of the COVID-19 pandemic in order to identify and mitigate any possible effect of the pandemic on the annual canvass. The reforms the Government had already introduced to the annual canvass process for this year allowed EROs to make more use of online and telephone communications than previously, meaning a canvass that was safer for both Electoral Services teams and the general public. In addition, the Representation of the People (Electoral Registers Publication Date) Regulations 2020 has also provided EROs with additional flexibility to conduct this year’s annual canvass by allowing them an additional two months in which to publish their final revised register, if required - thus helping to safeguard the completeness and accuracy of the electoral register.