TIME is running out to lobby peers in a last-ditch bid to ensure that expats who have been out of Britain for more than 15 years may vote in the EU referendum.
The House of Lords enters ‘committee stage’ discussions on Wednesday (October 28), with further sessions expected on Monday November 2 and Wednesday November 4. As we report in November’s edition of the Connexion newspaper, amendments have now been lodged by Cross Bench and Liberal Democrat peers extending the voting franchise (right to vote) – for the EU referendum only – to all British adults in the EU.
This will be followed by a ‘report stage’ around mid-month when votes will be taken as to which amendments the Lords will put forward.
At present the bill restricts referendum voting to people with a UK General Election vote, however, despite it being a Conservative manifesto pledge the government has so far not prioritised a promised ‘Votes for Life’ bill ending the 15-year limit and it may not become law in time to affect voting in the referendum (scheduled for 2016 or 2017).
This comes as the British government declined to comment to Connexion on why it appears reluctant to let long-term expatriates – who might be assumed to be mostly in favour of staying in the EU – have a referendum vote.
It is not known exactly how many of the estimated two million British expats living in other EU countries have been out of the UK for more than 15 years, and have therefore lost their voting rights. However a House of Lords report on overseas voters last year said that some estimates put the number of British expatriates who cannot vote in elections due either to being under 18 or having been abroad too long, at about 46%.
In the ‘second reading’ debate held in the Lords earlier this month many peers – Liberal Democrat, Cross Bench (no specific party) and Labour – spoke in strong support of all Britons living in the EU having a referendum vote. However Conservative voices were absent, apart from an opening speech by Baroness Anelay (Con) on behalf of the government, in which she said the government thinks the ‘Westminster franchise’ [as for a General Election] remains the correct ‘starting point’ for the referendum, including ‘British citizens who have been abroad for less than 15 years’.
The baroness acknowledged ‘strong feelings of some noble lords about extending the franchise’ [including 16-17-year-olds, EU citizens living in the UK and Britons living in the EU]. She added that the peers would be aware that the government had committed to extending the franchise to all expats and that it would ‘bring forward a bill separately to amend the Westminster franchise to enable this... in due course’.
Connexion asked the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), which is in charge of the Referendum Bill:
• Did Baroness Anelay imply by this that the government promises to prioritise getting the Votes for Life bill passed in time for the referendum – so the franchise (right to vote) is extended for the referendum specifically - or was it just an unrelated remark, telling us what we already know - that a bill on long-term expats’ voting rights is planned at some point?
• Can the government comment on the growing impression that the government is unwilling to allow long-term expats a vote? This is due to the long-term expats not being included in the Referendum Bill, no Conservative peer speaking to support them so far in the Lords, and the Votes for Life bill being on a back-burner, while the Referendum Bill has been prioritised.
A FCO spokesman said: “As you are a France-based outlet we’ve passed your query on to our press team at the Paris British embassy.”
On Connexion querying this, as it is a major issue, related to central government not diplomacy or consular matters and our readership is mainly British, we were told again: “We are in close contact with them but as you are a France-based outlet they will be in contact with you.”
A British embassy spokeswoman said: “These [Votes for Life and the referendum] are different questions. The government remains committed to delivering ‘Votes for Life’ as set out in the Conservative Party manifesto. There will be a separate bill to deliver this as a permanent change. The government is currently considering the timetable to do this.”
Connexion will be interviewing Cross Bench peer Lord Hannay next Tuesday evening before the debate. Lord Hannay (CB) and Baroness Miller (LD) have now both lodged amendments asking for long-term expats in the EU to have a vote.
Lord Hannay told Connexion: “It is by no means certain we will succeed [in getting the Lords to officially back the amendment], as the official Labour Party are not supporting it – though a lot of Labour peers will. Then after our amendments to the bill, it will go back to the Commons and the key question will be how they vote. If they reject it, it is unusual for the Lords to try to insist a second time.”
In comparison, he said the idea of extending the referendum vote to 16-year-olds has more unanimous support in the Lords. However, he said at least one peer from all the main groups is expected to support the amendment, so that would send a clear signal to the government.
The long-term expat issue is “quite embarrassing” for the Consevatives, Lord Hannay said, considering that extending the franchise to all expats is in their manifesto.
“It would have been easy for them to give a vote to expats without the 15-year cut-off for this referendum, but they decided not to. I don’t know why, considering that they will legislate later in the parliament to remove the limit.
“Their only argument is they don’t think changes to the franchise should be made in a one-off way like this, to which the answer is they are doing it anyway, because they are giving members of the House of Lords and the citizens of Gibraltar a vote. So they can’t say it’s not possible. And no one is saying that this would be the definitive lifting of the 15-year limit. It would just be for this one vote.”
Christopher Chantrey of Conservatives Abroad and chairman of the British Community Committee of France, said he had no ‘inside information’ on the government’s view, but ‘rather agree[s] with [The Connexion]’.
He said: “It’s likely expats in Europe will want the UK to stay in, and if you are organising a referendum every vote counts, unlike in a General Election where if you are in a constituency where one party has a huge majority then your vote for another party might not count. It’s rather perplexing.
“It was a great triumph for us after years of campaigning that Votes for Life was put into the manifesto. It does not seem logical to say it won’t apply to this important consultation that is the referendum. The logical thing would have to have put the Votes for Life bill upfront in the calendar. It seems the voting rights area is still a bit of a mess and that it hasn’t been handled very well.”
However Mr Chantrey said Lord Lexden (Con) would speak in favour of an amendment for long-term expats in the committee stage, and he hoped some other Conservative peers would do so as well.
Lord Lexden confirmed told Connexion: “I shall support—and almost certainly speak on—the inclusion of British citizens living elsewhere in the EU during the further consideration of the bill when votes take place on amendments. I cannot speculate on the intentions or views of others.” As a backbench peer he also could not comment about, or on behalf of, the government.
Mr Chantrey said that it is also vital that as many expats as possible register to vote (see Register to vote). He added that he hoped improvements might be made to the overseas voting process so as to avoid ballot papers being sent out late (as happened in many cases at the General Election), such as being able to download a ballot paper.
“There’s no list of candidates to wait for; there’s just one question, and that’s already been defined. Then you’re only relying on mail in one direction, not two,” he said.
Other amendments made by peers include ones asking for detailed reports to be made several months before the referendum on the outcome of the government’s negotiations with the EU partners and on the UK’s future relationship with the EU in the event of the UK withdrawing. One tabled by Baroness Morgan (Labour) and Lord Hannay specifically asks that this include outcomes for Britons in other EU countries.
You can find the bill and proposed amendments at: Referendum BIll
Previous articles:
How to lobby over expat vote
Peers speak up for expats’ rights
