Town to face election review

THE legality of the recent borough and parish council elections is being challenged by Warrington North MP Helen Jones who is “delighted” they are to be reviewed by the Election Commission.
But Warrington Borough Council say the visit is normal procedure following any election and that they are already reviewing procedures as part of “normal practice.”
Meanwhile Ms Jones expressed her delight at securing an adjournment date on the subject, having previously stated the Warrington elections “revealed both an astonishing degree of incompetence and a disregard for the basic principles of democracy that was frankly breathtaking.”
The MP added: “It brought me no pleasure to seek this Adjournment Debate, but the administration of the elections in Warrington was so poor I felt I had no choice, particularly as the official response seems to be that any mistakes were simply ‘oversights.’
“This is not a party political matter. All parties want to see well run elections which encourage as many people as possible to exercise their right to vote in the easiest possible way. Democracy should not be subject to such oversights and a full investigation is needed so that the serious mistakes which occurred do not happen again. It is frankly more than an ‘oversight’ when candidates and their agents are not allowed to see their own count and results are announced without the candidates knowing that the count had even begun.
“I am delighted that the Electoral Commission are to conduct an investigation and will most certainly be taking up the invitation made for me to present my evidence to them. I trust that everyone involved will be able to present their comments to the Commission so that a thorough review can be undertaken.”
The legality of the count was first challenged by Stockton Heath Alternative Residents Council member Michael Foxall, who claimed the correct procedures were not followed.
Mr Foxall claims that at Stockton Heath, SHARC candidate Patrick Mullee lost out by only three votes but was not allowed to have a recount, adding there was also an irregularity in the Appleton count.
Justice Minister Bridget Prentice, said: “Serious concerns will have been raised and a shadow cast over Warrington’s electoral services. The Electoral Commission has the ability to implement performance standards, and I hope that it will carefully examine what happened in Warrington in its review. It may advise Warrington to seek help and support from other authorities where standards are high and good practice is the norm.”
A council spokesman said: “As the council has made clear since the elections on 1 May, it is conducting a review of all its procedures, as is normal practice following every election. We are already working closely with the Electoral Commission and will have external support to assist us in gathering information.
“As the Minister explained in the House of Commons, issues and representations made by Ms Jones and others will be fed into the review and Ms Jones will be invited to participate at her convenience and in her preferred manner. We expect the review to conclude and report in late summer.”