Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the Electoral Commission's publication of electoral data from the 2019 United Kingdom Parliamentary general election, what assessment they have made of (1) the reasons for tendered ballot papers having to be issued, and (2) how the number of tendered ballots compares to the total votes cast; and what plans they have to work with the Electoral Commission and professional bodies representing Returning Officers to assess the possible reasons for tendered ballot papers being issued.

A tendered ballot paper may be issued to a voter in a number of circumstances at an election; for example, if an elector goes to a polling station and finds that the register has been marked to show that somebody has already voted for them, and the elector believes this is an error. As noted in the question, the Electoral Commission included information on the number of tendered ballot papers issued in the electoral data it compiled from the 2019 General Election. The Government will continue to work with the Electoral Commission and other relevant bodies to support the delivery of elections and will consider a wide range of issues as part of this work.