Delays to postal vote delivery being urgently investigated, says minister

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Delays to postal votes being delivered are being urgently investigated, a minister has said, amid concerns that some people could be left disenfranchised at the General Election.

Kevin Hollinrake has criticised Royal Mail for failing to deliver ballot packs to voters in some constituencies ahead of polling day on Thursday.

Appearing on Tuesday’s morning broadcast round, health minister Maria Caulfield said Mr Hollinrake, the postal affairs minister, is in “direct contact” with the service.

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“Kevin is taking this very seriously,” she told Sky News.

“Kevin is investigating this urgently. I know there’s extra resources going into this to try and do a sweep of all the sorting offices and make sure they’re out there.

“If people have only just received their postal vote, they can take it to their polling station on election day and it will still be counted.”

Royal Mail will also be conducting sweeps of their delivery system on polling day to make sure any ballot packs still in the postal system are identified and passed to returning officers ahead of polls closing, the Government said.

It comes after Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney warned some Scots could be “disenfranchised” if their postal votes cannot be filled out and returned on time.

Some voters north of the border said they have not received their ballots, and many have now left for a holiday overseas.

It’s not acceptable it’s sat in sorting offices. It needs to be delivered to people’s houses. They need to put more people on to do that

Kevin Hollinrake

However, Royal Mail later issued a statement claiming there was “no backlog” and that votes will be delivered as soon as they arrive in the network.

Sources in the postal service have also hit back at Mr Hollinrake, saying he has not raised his concerns about the system, and that representatives have advised him that ballot packs are being sent out as soon as possible.

A spokesperson said: “We have no backlog of postal votes and, whilst we are not complacent, we remain confident that postal votes handed to us on time will be delivered prior to polling day.

“Where specific concerns have been raised, we have investigated and confirmed ballot packs are being delivered as soon as they arrive in our network.

“We would welcome a review into the timetable for future elections with all stakeholders to ensure that the system for printing and administering postal votes before they are handed to Royal Mail works as smoothly as possible.”

The electoral watchdog has said it recognises the pressures on the postal voting system due to the holiday season and will look into its administration after this election.

Meanwhile, the Local Government Association called for a review of the already “overburdened” system put under extra pressure by an “unprecedented increase” in people voting by post.

On Monday, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said Rishi Sunak is not concerned that some people could be disenfranchised by the issues.

“We’re working closely with the Electoral Commission, returning officers, Royal Mail and the print suppliers to support the resolution of these issues,” he told journalists.

Mr Hollinrake criticised Royal Mail for failing to anticipate the demand over summer, telling the Telegraph: “There’s a resourcing issue. They have recruited extra people and I welcome that but they’ve got to make sure they’ve got the right number of people to deliver the mail at busy times like this.

“It’s not acceptable it’s sat in sorting offices. It needs to be delivered to people’s houses. They need to put more people on to do that.”

A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission said: “Tens of thousands of postal votes were delivered over the weekend. We know local authorities and Royal Mail are working to get the final ones out as soon as possible.

“As is the case at all elections, given the electoral timetable, there is a short window of time for administrators to prepare and dispatch postal votes.

“Anyone who hasn’t yet received their postal ballot pack should request a replacement from their local authority. Voters have the option to hand their postal pack to their polling station on polling day if they are concerned about posting it.

“They can also ask someone to hand their ballot pack in on their behalf. Voters can hand in a maximum of five postal ballots in addition to their own, and will be required to complete a form at the polling station when doing so.

“We recognise the pressures on the postal voting system due to the holiday season. We are continuing to provide advice and guidance to electoral services teams to support them with the postal voting process.

“Following the election, we will undertake research with voters and electoral administrators to understand their experiences at this poll. The administration of postal voting is one of the areas we will look at.”

According to the regulator, a voter can only apply for an emergency proxy if something unexpected prevents them from voting, such as a medical emergency, being away for work, or a lost or stolen voter ID.

Local councils are responsible for sending postal ballot forms to voters.

Completed postal votes must have reached councils by 10pm on polling day.