European Assembly Elections Act 1978 (Repealed)

SCHEDULE 1 System of Election, &c.

Section 3. European Parliamentary constituencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 European Parliamentary elections 2 (1) The persons entitled to vote as electors at an European Parliamentary election in any particular European Parliamentary constituency shall be— (a) those who, on the day appointed under paragraph 3 below for the election, would be entitled to vote as electors at a parliamentary election in a parliamentary constituency wholly or partly comprised in the European Parliamentary constituency (excluding any person not registered in the register of parliamentary electors at an address within the European Parliamentary constituency); and (b) peers who, on that day, would be entitled to vote at a local government election in an electoral area wholly or partly comprised in the European Parliamentary constituency (excluding any peer not registered at an address within the European Parliamentary constituency for the purposes of local government elections). (2) In an European Parliamentary election in the constituency of Northern Ireland each vote shall be a single transferable vote, that is to say a vote— (a) capable of being given so as to indicate the voter’s order of preference for the candidates for election as representatives for the constituency; and (b) capable of being transferred to the next choice— (i) when the vote is not required to give a prior choice the necessary quota of votes; or (ii) when, owing to the deficiency in the number of votes given for a prior choice, that choice is eliminated from the list of candidates. (3) Subject to the provisions of this and the following paragraph, the Secretary of State may by regulations make provision— (a) as to the conduct of European Parliamentary elections (including the registration of electors and the limitation of candidates’ election expenses); and (b) as to the questioning of such an election and the consequences of irregularities. (3A) Regulations under this paragraph may make provision (including the creation of criminal offences)— (a) about the limitation of election expenses of candidates; (b) for the allocation of seats in the case of an equality of votes; (c) for securing that no person stands for election more than once at a general election. For the purposes of this sub-paragraph a person stands for election if he is nominated as a candidate or is included in a party’s list of candidates. (3B) Regulations under this paragraph shall, in relation to an election in an electoral region in Great Britain, make provision for the nomination of registered parties, including provision requiring a nomination to be accompanied by a list of candidates numbering no more than the MEPs to be elected for that region. (4) Regulations under this paragraph may— (a) apply, with such modifications or exceptions as may be specified in the regulations, any provision of the Representation of the People Acts or of any other enactment relating to parliamentary elections or local government elections, and any provision made under any enactment; (b) amend any form contained in regulations made under the Representation of the People Acts so far as may be necessary to enable it to be used both for the purpose indicated in regulations so made and for the corresponding purpose in relation to European Parliamentary elections; (c) so far as may be necessary in consequence of any provision made by or under this Act, amend any provision made by or under any enactment relating to the registration of parliamentary electors or local government electors. (5) Section 26of the Welsh Language Act 1993(power to prescribe Welsh version) shall apply in relation to regulations under this paragraph as it applies in relation to Acts of Parliament. (6) No regulations shall be made under this paragraph unless a draft thereof has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament. Filling of vacancies 3 (1) Regulations under paragraph 2 shall include provision prescribing the procedure to be followed when a seat is or becomes vacant. (2) The regulations may— (a) include provision requiring a by-election to be held in specified circumstances (and provision modifying section 3 in its application to by-elections); (b) require a seat last filled from a party’s list of candidates to be filled, in specified circumstances, from such a list (without a by-election). (3) Where regulations provide for a by-election to be held— (a) the poll shall take place on a day, appointed by order of the Secretary of State, within such period as may be specified in the regulations, but (b) the regulations may enable the Secretary of State to decline to appoint a day in certain circumstances. (4) A statutory instrument containing an order made by virtue of sub-paragraph (3) shall be laid before Parliament after being made. Returning officers 4 (1) There shall be a returning officer for each electoral region who shall be— (a) in the case of a region in England and in the case of Wales, a person who— (i) is an acting returning officer by virtue of section 28(1) of the Representation of the People Act 1983, and (ii) is designated for the purposes of this sub-paragraph by order of the Secretary of State; (b) in the case of Scotland, a person who— (i) is a returning officer by virtue of section 25 of that Act, and (ii) is designated for the purposes of this sub-paragraph by order of the Secretary of State; (c) in the case of Northern Ireland, the Chief Electoral Officer. (2) Regulations under paragraph 2 may confer functions on the returning officers for electoral regions and on persons who are, in relation to parliamentary elections— (a) in the case of England and Wales, acting returning officers, or (b) in the case of Scotland, returning officers. (3) The council of a relevant area which is wholly or partly within an electoral region shall place the services of their officers at the disposal of any person on whom functions in relation to that region are conferred in accordance with sub-paragraph (2), for the purpose of assisting him in the discharge of those functions. (4) In sub-paragraph (3), “relevant area” means— (a) a district or London borough in England, (b) a county or county borough in Wales, and (c) a local government area in Scotland. Disqualification for office of representative to Assembly 5 (1) Subject to sub-paragraph (3) below, and without prejudice to Article 6(1) (incompatibility of office of representative with certain offices in or connected with Community institutions), a person is disqualified for the office of Member of the Assembly if— (a) he is disqualified, whether under the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 or otherwise, for membership of the House of Commons; or (b) he is a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary. (2) A person is disqualified for the office of Member of the Assembly for a particular European Parliamentaryelectoral region if he is under section 1(2) of the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 disqualified for membership of the House of Commons for any particular parliamentary constituency wholly or partly comprised in that European Parliamentaryelectoral region. (2A) A citizen of the Union, determined in accordance with article 8.1 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (as amended by Title II of the Treaty on European Union), who is not a Commonwealth citizen or citizen of the Republic of Ireland is disqualified under this paragraph for the office of Member of the European Parliament if he is disqualified for that office through a criminal law or civil law decision under the law of the Member State of which he is a national. (2B) In sub-paragraph (2A) above “a criminal law or civil law decision” has the same meaning as it has in the directive of the Council of the European Communities No.93/109/EC. (3) A person is not disqualified for office as a Member ofthe Assembly by reason only— (a) that he is a peer, whether of the United Kingdom, Great Britain, England or Scotland; or (b) that he is a Lord Spiritual; or (c) that he holds an office mentioned in section 4 of the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 (stewardship of Chiltern Hundreds etc.); or (d) that he holds any of the offices for the time being described in Part II or Part III of Schedule 1 to the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 which are for the time being designated in an order by the Secretary of State as nondisqualifying offices in relation to the Assembly. or (e) that he is disqualified under section 3 of the Act of Settlement (disqualification for membership of either House of Parliament of persons born out of the Kingdoms of England, Scotland or Ireland or the dominions thereunto belonging except those who are Commonwealth citizens or citizens of the Republic of Ireland), provided that he is a citizen of the Union, determined in accordance with article 8.1 of the Treaty establishing the European Community (as amended by Title II of the Treaty on European Union), who is resident in the United Kingdom. (4) If a person who is disqualified under this paragraph for the office of MEP is returned as an MEP under— (a) section 3 or 3A, or (b) regulations made in accordance with paragraph 3(1), his return shall be void and his seat vacant. (4A) If a person who is disqualified under this paragraph for the office of MEP for a particular electoral region is returned as an MEP for that region under— (a) section 3 or 3A, or (b) regulations made in accordance with paragraph 3(1), his return shall be void and his seat vacant. (5) If a Member ofthe Assembly becomes disqualified under this paragraph for the office of Member of the Assembly or for the office of Member of the Assembly for the European Parliamentaryelectoral region for which he was returned, his seat shall be vacated. (6) A statutory instrument made under this paragraph shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament. Judicial proceedings as to disqualification under paragraph 5 6 (1) Any person may apply to the court for a declaration or, as the case may be, a declarator that a person who purports to be an MEP - (a) is disqualified, or (b) was disqualified at the time when, or at some time since, he was returned as an MEP under section 3 or 3A or under regulations made in accordance with paragraph 3(1). (1A) The decision of the court on an application under this paragraph shall be final. (2) On an application under this paragraph the person in respect of whom the application is made shall be the respondent or, as the case may be, defender; and the applicant shall give such security for the costs or expenses of the proceedings, not exceeding £5,000, as the court may direct. (3) No declaration or declarator shall be made under this paragraph in respect of any person on grounds which subsisted at the time of his election if there is pending, or has been tried, an election petition in which his disqualification on those grounds is, or was, in issue. (4) Any declaration or declarator made by the court on an application under this paragraph shall be certified in writing to the Secretary of State forthwith by the court. (5) The court for the purposes of this paragraph is the High Court, the Court of Session or the High Court of Justice in Northern Ireland according as the European Parliamentaryelectoral region to which the application relates is in England and Wales, or Scotland, or Northern Ireland; and in this paragraph “disqualified” means disqualified under paragraph 5 above for the office of Member of to the Assembly (whether generally or in relation to a particular European Parliamentaryelectoral region). (6) The Secretary of State may by order substitute another figure for the figure in sub-paragraph (2). (7) A statutory instrument made under sub-paragraph (6) shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.