Problems at the polls explained

8:35am Tuesday 22nd July 2008

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The problems that plagued the borough’s polling stations during the London elections in May were caused by basic human errors and an over-stretched staff, a committee heard.

Ballot papers arrived late, causing delayed opening at three polling stations, while voters claimed they received directions on how to vote from officials during the elections for the Mayor of London and London Assembly.

The London Assembly convened an Electoral Review Committee last Thursday, chaired by Barnet and Camden assembly member Brian Coleman, to find out what happened and look into other London-wide issues that arose.

Barnet Council chief executive Leo Boland told the committee that the problems arose because his team started distributing ballot papers believing they had enough for 75 per cent of the electorate, later realising they only had enough for 55 per cent.

“We were told to give out 75 per cent to each station, then 55 per cent and we didn’t make that adjustment in the software,” he said. “We had to work all night getting the ballot papers back and reallocating them with 55 per cent.”

As the constituency returning officer, Mr Boland was responsible for the logistics of the election in the borough, which he said were “complex” and challenged some election staff.

“When I first started working as a returning officer in Newham in 1998 we were running a system that had not changed in 150 years,” he said. “The people that ran it knew the system instinctively.

“Roll forward ten years and there’s nothing about the GLA elections that was similar. What we’ve got is a much more complex system but the same resources as ten years ago. There’s much less tolerance to cope with mistakes.”

Mr Boland said Barnet and Camden’s election staff worked for up to 70 hours with only five hours’ sleep “to ensure that there was a credible result”.

Mr Coleman said he had never heard of such problems in the UK and likened the election in Barnet to some he witnessed as an elections observer for the Council of Europe.

“I remember being in Macedonia once and it was an hour and a half before they could find the caretaker with the keys to the polling station,” he said. “Goodness me did I write a rude report on that election.”

The committee did not broach the allegations that Barnet election officials gave inappropriate advice, which is a criminal offence and was reported to police in the week after the election.

The committee will publish a report of its findings.