Last year, over three million British citizens living abroad regained their right to vote in British General Elections and referendums following the implementation of the Elections Act 2022. This represented the biggest increase in the British electoral franchise since the introduction of full female suffrage in 1928.
As of Tuesday 16th January 2024, the arbitrary 15-year limit on voting rights was scrapped and British citizens worldwide became able to register to vote online regardless of how long they have been overseas. This was linked to the last UK address they were either registered to vote at or lived at. However, it now appears that failing to vote could result in a fine.
A Labour peer has called on the UK Government to enforce mandatory voting in an effort to increase turnout. Lord Foulkes believes that a potential £20 fine could serve as an “encouragement” for individuals to participate in the democratic process. The Labour Government intends to reduce the voting age to 16 in its forthcoming elections bill. Foulkes, a former Labour MSP and MP, supports votes at 16 but urges Ministers to take further action. He argued that the low turnout at the previous general election - under 60% - indicates that the system is “broken”.
Speaking to the Daily Record, he said: “As an increasing swathe of the population tunes out of politics, politicians increasingly position themselves in alignment with the voters who do vote, and will continue to turn out.” Ironically, the ruling was the culmination of the ‘Votes for Life’ campaign, led by Conservatives Abroad - the British Conservative Party’s global network of members and supporters overseas.
The ‘Votes for Life’ campaign has also been a long-standing Conservative Manifesto commitment.
Commenting, the former Secretary of State for the Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove MP said: “From today, millions of British nationals across the world can exercise their right to vote in future General Elections and have their say in the way their country should be governed. The Conservatives have once again shown that we are the party for democracy and protecting an individual’s right to vote.”
And, such a move could work to Labour’s advantage over the European Union. Prime Minister Starmer is clearly wanting to repair damaged relations with the EU. And considering most Britons say that Brexit has been more of a failure than a success (61%), with 20% saying it has neither been a success nor failure and 13% seeing it as more of a success, he has got a sound base to make a serious move.
Will expats back him after the nightmare of Brexit?