Listen
Chief Returning Officer post
17/12/2008
A new post of Chief Returning Officer could bring greater clarity and consistency to the management of elections in Scotland, Minister for Parliamentary Business Bruce Crawford said today.
The Minister was speaking as a consultation on the nature and remit of the proposed Chief Returning Officer (CRO) post got underway. The creation of such a post was one of the key recommendations of the Gould Report into the problems experienced on election night in May 2007.
Mr Crawford said:
"The Gould Report provided a series of recommendations to improve the running of elections in Scotland. We have already moved to decouple local government elections from the Scottish Parliamentary elections - and today we begin the consultation on his recommendation for a Chief Returning Officer.
"Gould believed that such a post could help bring some sense to the current complicated and fragmented landscape of electoral administration. I agree. However we need to ensure that the new post improves accountability - not add yet another layer of bureaucracy to any already complex structure.
"Today's paper therefore invites views on the possible responsibilities and remit for the post - for example, to whom or what should the post holder ultimately be responsible? The paper considers similar existing models, including the Regional Returning Officer for European Elections and the Northern Ireland Chief Electoral Officer.
"If we create a Chief Returning Officer I would like to see his or her role extend to all elections run in Scotland - local government, Scottish, UK and European Parliament. That was Ron Gould's view and it is the view of most electoral professionals. It is unfortunate that the Scotland Office seems reluctant to make this happen.
"However we cannot wait forever. So while our consultation paper considers models that cover all elections, we also seek views on whether it is worth pursuing the CRO option for local government elections alone.
"I believe the new post could bring greater reassurance to those who run our elections and - more importantly - those who vote in them. It could help clear the clutter and create a smoother and more accountable electoral system."
The Gould Report recommended the establishment of a Chief Returning Officer who "would be responsible for issuing directions, coordinating and overseeing all aspects of the electoral processes for the Scottish Parliamentary and local government elections where consistency or centralisation of returning officer responsibilities arise, such as the provision of electronic counting and the criteria for ballot paper rejection".