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Mr. Woolas: Because I have not been asked to until now. I am reflecting the debate in Committee. My hon. Friend should look back on the five principles that I mentioned, one of which the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) disagreed with. This might seem surprising coming from the Labour Benches, but tradition is important in this area. It is not desirable to create turbulence in the system, but at the same time we should move in a generally devolutionary direction. My hon. Friend the Member for High Peak (Tom Levitt) is trying to move the debate forward. I have tried to ensure that the Government have not been too restrictive in imposing all-out elections, so as to allow for a change in the direction of travel, but I cannot, as yet, go as far as he is asking. If he gives me a chance to list the figures, he will get some satisfaction.
The hon. Member for Hazel Grove could be described in this instance, if not outside this debate, as a political anorak. I do not mean that in a pejorative sense. I congratulate him on going to the Library to ask the question that he did, and I am interested to hear that he did not get a satisfactory answer. In 2002, six authorities moved to election by halves—Cheltenham, Fareham, Gosport, Hastings, Nuneaton and Bedworth, and Oxford. Several councils have moved from whole council elections to election by thirds. They include Warrington in 1997, Purbeck in 1999, Castle Point in 2003, North-East Lincolnshire in 2003, and Plymouth in 2003. Councils that have moved from election by thirds to whole council elections include Medway in 1997, Broadland in 2007 and Eastbourne in 2007. I know that the hon. Member for Hazel Grove is especially interested in Eastbourne.
Hon. Members asked about the position in York. For the purposes of the Bill, it is a non-metropolitan district. It is, of course, a unitary authority, so the answer to the question about York is yes. The hon. Member for Hazel Grove asked about halves and metropolitan districts. No metropolitan districts elect on the basis of halves; they have no tradition of that. Seven non-metropolitan districts work on the basis of halves, and could move back to a previous system. Indeed, I have just provided a list of them. All metropolitans could go back to a previous system if they first choose to move to whole council elections. If any of the 81 districts or 19 unitaries that currently elect by thirds or the seven district councils that work on the basis of halves moved to whole council elections, they could move back to thirds or halves, as the case may be.
Any of the 150 district councils that currently hold whole council elections but previously elected by thirds could move back. Since 1997, three district councils have moved to whole council elections; they could therefore move back. I hope that that is as clear as possible.
Mr. Woolas: My hon. Friend is going to push me on that point.
Tom Levitt: I am about to sound a little ridiculous. Does my hon. Friend genuinely suggest that we have tabled 40 amendments simply to allow three councils to move back to election by thirds?
Mr. Woolas: No. I shall not repeat myself, but a reading of Hansard will show that that is not the case. We are essentially trying to allow councils that have moved to move back, but not necessarily those that moved in the last period. Where there is a tradition, councils can revert to it. I am essentially excluding London and counties. The reason for that is interesting. It is partly because there is no tradition and partly because the consultation did not request the inclusion of London and counties.
Sir Peter Soulsby (Leicester, South) (Lab): Let us be clear. Is the Minister saying that unitary authorities that were formerly metropolitan district authorities can revert to elections by thirds if they held such elections at some point since the 1973-74 reorganisation?
Mr. Woolas: Yes. That is precisely my point.
An inevitable consequence of devolution is different patterns in different areas. As a country and a body politic, we need to get used to that and welcome it.
Andrew Stunell: I appreciate the spirit in which the Minister approaches the matter. He appeared to be surprised by the point that the hon. Member for High Peak (Tom Levitt) made about authorities that had always held all-out elections, and the fact that the Bill is not giving them the opportunity to move to thirds. The Minister expressed surprise that he had not been asked about that previously. Let me remind him that the amendment that we tabled in Committee included those councils, too.
Mr. Woolas: The hon. Gentleman is right and I was wrong. I intended to refer to the pre-consultation. He thanked me for my approach. I should like to thank my hon. Friend the Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne), whose pressure and lobbying, along with that of other hon. Friends, led to the amendments. However grateful the hon. Member for Hazel Grove is, my hon. Friend the Member for St. Helens, North (Mr. Watts)—from the Whips Office—is not. I therefore urge hon. Members to support the new clause.
Clause read a Second time , and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A district council in England that is subject to a scheme for elections by halves or by thirds may resolve that it is to be subject instead to the scheme for whole-council elections under section 33.
(2) A resolution under this section is referred to in this Part as a “resolution for whole-council elections”.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A council must comply with this section in passing a resolution for whole-council elections.
(2) The council must not pass the resolution unless it has taken reasonable steps to consult such persons as it thinks appropriate on the proposed change.
(3) The resolution must be passed—
(a) at a meeting specially convened for the purpose, and
(b) by a majority of at least two thirds of the members voting on it.
(4) The council must pass the resolution in a permitted resolution period.
(5) In this section “permitted resolution period” means—
(a) in relation to a metropolitan district council—
(i) the period ending with 31 December 2009, or
(ii) the period in 2013, or in any fourth year afterwards, that starts with 1 October and ends with 31 December;
(b) in relation to a non-metropolitan district council—
(i) the period ending with 31 December 2010, or
(ii) the period in 2014, or in any fourth year afterwards, that starts with 1 October and ends with 31 December.
(6) The Secretary of State may by order provide that a permitted resolution period is to end later than the day determined in accordance with subsection (5).’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A non-metropolitan district council in England that—
(a) was formerly subject to a scheme for elections by halves, but
(b) is for the time being subject to a scheme for whole-council elections, may resolve that it is to revert to being subject to a scheme for elections by halves.
(2) For the purposes of this section, a council that is subject to a scheme for whole-council elections was “formerly subject” to a scheme for elections by halves if it was subject to such a scheme at any time in the period beginning with—
(b) if later, the date on which the council was created.
(3) A resolution under this section is referred to in this Part as a “resolution for elections by halves”.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A council must comply with this section in passing a resolution for elections by halves.
(2) The council must not pass the resolution unless it has taken reasonable steps to consult such persons as it thinks appropriate on the proposed change.
(3) The resolution must be passed—
(a) at a meeting specially convened for the purpose, and
(b) by a majority of at least two thirds of the members voting on it.
(4) The council must pass the resolution in a permitted resolution period.
(5) In this section “permitted resolution period” means the period in 2008, or in any fourth year afterwards, that starts with 1 October and ends with 31 December.
(6) The Secretary of State may by order provide that a permitted resolution period is to end later than the day determined in accordance with subsection (5).’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A district council in England that—
(a) was formerly subject to a scheme for elections by thirds, but
(b) is for the time being subject to a scheme for whole-council elections,
may resolve that it is to revert to being subject to a scheme for elections by thirds.
(2) For the purposes of this section, a council that is subject to a scheme for whole-council elections was “formerly subject” to a scheme for elections by thirds if it was subject to such a scheme at any time in the period beginning with—
(b) if later, the date on which the council was created.
(3) A resolution under this section is referred to in this Part as a “resolution for elections by thirds”.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A council must comply with this section in passing a resolution for elections by thirds.
(2) The council must not pass the resolution unless it has taken reasonable steps to consult such persons as it thinks appropriate on the proposed change.
(3) The resolution must be passed—
(a) at a meeting specially convened for the purpose, and
(b) by a majority of at least two thirds of the members voting on it.
(4) The council must pass the resolution in a permitted resolution period.
(5) In this section “permitted resolution period” means—
(a) in relation to a metropolitan district council: the period in 2011, or in any fourth year afterwards, that starts with 1 October and ends with 31 December;
(b) in relation to a non-metropolitan district council: the period in 2008, or in any fourth year afterwards, that starts with 1 October and ends with 31 December.
(6) The Secretary of State may by order provide that a permitted resolution period is to end later than the day determined in accordance with subsection (5).’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A council must comply with this section as soon as practicable after passing a resolution for elections by halves or a resolution for elections by thirds.
(2) The council must produce an explanatory document.
(3) The council must make the explanatory document—
(a) available for public inspection at the council’s principal office at all reasonable times, and
(b) available to the public by such other means as the council thinks appropriate.
(4) The council must publicise these matters—
(a) that the council has resolved to become subject to the new electoral scheme;
(b) that the Electoral Commission is to make provision by order about the operation of, and transition to, the new electoral scheme;
(c) how the explanatory document is available in accordance with subsection (3);
(d) the address of the council’s principal office.
(5) It is for the council to decide how these matters are to be publicised.
(6) An explanatory document is a document which sets out details of the new electoral scheme (so far as the details are known at the time the document is prepared).’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) A council must comply with this section as soon as practicable after passing a resolution for elections by halves or a resolution for elections by thirds.
(2) The council must give the Electoral Commission notice that it has passed the resolution.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) This section applies if the Electoral Commission receive notice under section (Notice to Electoral Commission) that a council has passed a resolution for elections by halves or a resolution for elections by thirds.
(2) As soon as practicable after receiving the notice, the Commission must consider whether to exercise their power under section 13(3) of the Local Government Act 1992 (c. 19) to direct the Boundary Committee to conduct a review of the district in question (or any part of it).
(3) As soon as practicable after deciding whether or not to direct the Boundary Committee to conduct an electoral review, the Commission must give the council notice of the decision.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) Where the Electoral Commission receive notice under section (Notice to Electoral Commission) that a council has passed a resolution, they must—
(a) in the case of a resolution for elections by halves, make an order for elections by halves in relation to the council (see sections (Order for elections by halves: years in which elections are to be held) and (Order for elections by halves: councillors to be elected at ordinary elections));
(b) in the case of a resolution for elections by thirds, make an order for elections by thirds in relation to the council (see sections (Order for elections by thirds: years in which elections are to be held) and (Order for elections by thirds: councillors to be elected at ordinary elections)).
(2) But the Commission must not make the order—
(a) before they have decided whether or not to give the Boundary Committee a direction to conduct an electoral review (see section (Electoral Commission to consider whether electoral review is necessary)(2)), or
(b) if they give such a direction, before the Boundary Committee have concluded the review.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
‘(1) An order for elections by halves in relation to a council must secure that the ordinary elections of councillors of the council are held in years determined in accordance with this section.
(2) Ordinary elections of the councillors of the council are to be held in—
(a) the first relevant year after the year in which the Electoral Commission makes the order, and
(b) each subsequent year for elections by halves.
“relevant year” means 2011 and every fourth year afterwards;
“year for elections by halves” means 2012 and every second year afterwards.’.— [Mr. Woolas.]
Brought up, read the First and Second time, and added to the Bill.
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