Up to 3 million British citizens living overseas for more than 15 years are set to be able to vote in the next general election.
Draft legislation changes on the enfranchisement of the long-term UK diaspora has been published, with the expectation it will become law under the parliamentary process by mid-January.
This would give enough time for Britons overseas to register for a vote in the general election if it happens in autumn 2024, as some Conservative sources have hinted.
The move brings to an end an almost 20-year battle by the late Harry Shindler, who challenged the former 15-year limit on voting rights in the high court in 2016. When successive governments failed to deliver on their manifesto promises he brought the case to the European court of justice.
Shindler, who died in February aged 101, had argued the UK “was a democracy but not a complete democracy” until all Britons were enfranchised.
“We owe a huge debt to Harry Shindler for his tireless campaigning on this and of course we are happy that the government has finally made good on its promise,” said Jane Golding, co-chair of campaign group British in Europe.
She said the proposed legislation was also the culmination of all the work campaigners in the organisation had undertaken since 2017 “to give Britons who live overseas a voice in the political process”.
Under the process the statutory instrument (draft legislation) must now go through the Commons and the Lords for final scrutiny, a process that usually passes without hitch and takes six to eight weeks.
British in Europe conducted a survey of more than 7,000 Britons affected – living in more than 60 countries – and raised questions with the government in relation to the registration and voting system that would follow.
British people living overseas for more than 15 years would be able to vote in the last constituency in which they were registered or provide proof of past residency.
For younger voters who emigrated before they could vote this could include school documentation, P45s or P60s.
“The list is non-exhaustive as it stands but we are very happy with it. We spent a lot of time asking in our survey about what sorts of documentation people had and what issues they had,” said Golding.
It is not known what constituencies the 3 million voters lived or were registered in but according to British in Europe’s survey, they were from every corner of the UK “from Land’s End up to the Orkneys”.
British in Europe said its survey showed high engagement with the political process at home with 84% saying they were “very likely” to vote in the next general election if they could and 10% saying they were “quite likely”.
About 18% said they would have found it difficult to prove their identity on the basis of the limited documentation allowed in the past.
Future voters will still need to go through identity checks, plus provide proof of past registration or past residency in the UK if they have not been on the electoral roll before.
For those registering for the first time, proof of former residency will be needed with a non-exhaustive list of documentation likely to be acceptable.
The list of documents to prove past residency is likely to include a British driving licence (including an expired licence); a letter from HMRC; a rent book from a local authority; a statement of benefits including child benefit; a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions confirming eligibility for a state pension; a utility or mobile telephone bill; a letter from an insurance provider; a letter from a student loans company or a bank statement, payslip, P45 or P60.
The Elections Act 2022 repealed the 15-year rule but many Britons living overseas were sceptical this government would deliver in practice.
