Filming at local election counts
Paul of the Woods Family made this Freedom of Information request to Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.
Dear Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council,
Can you tell me, what current legislation, if any, is in place to prevent the filming (video and audio recording) of proceedings at local election counts and postal vote opening sessions.
Please note, I do not require any details of Council procedure and/or regulations, as these are not rules that have to be abided by, by members of the public.
I am looking for relevant legislation that prevents filming at the above events, ie 'acts of parliament'
Yours faithfully,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Mr Woods,
Thank you for your email received on 17 March 2014 requesting information about filming at local elections.
I have recorded your request for information under reference F2014.03.138.
This has been passed to the relevant service and you will receive a response by 14 April 2014, as required by law.
In line with guidance published by the Information Commissioner’s Office, the council may make a charge for the provision of information – for example in order to cover the costs of postage (in line with the relevant postal charges) or charges for printing and copying (which will reflect photocopying charges levied by the council’s public libraries).
You will be informed if a fee is to be applied before information is to be provided.
Kind regards
Freedom of Information
Knowsley MBC
Archway Road
Huyton
Knowsley
Merseyside
L36 9UX
Dear Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council's handling of my FOI request 'Filming at local election counts'.
[ The request is over due. The response should be received in good time and in any case BEFORE the 14th April 2014]
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/f...
Yours faithfully,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Mr Woods
Thank you for taking the time to contact us.
We will give you a full response within 10 working days. If this is not possible, we will write to you within this time to explain why and let you know how long a full response will take.
If you need any further information please see contact details above.
For your information I have attached the link to the complaint procedure, if you do not have access please contact the customer liaison team for a paper copy.
http://www.knowsley.gov.uk/get-in-touch/...
kind regards
KMBC Complaints
Customer Liaison Team
6th Floor Huyton Municipal Building
Archway Road
Huyton
L36 9YU
Dear Mr Woods,
Freedom of Information request F2014-03-138
We have looked into your request for information about Filming at local election counts, and our response is shown below.
In response to the Freedom of Information request below please see the Representation of the People Act 1983 attached – equivalent provisions also apply at other elections.
Sections 2 and 4 refer to maintaining the secrecy of voting at both the count and postal vote opening and that any specified information obtained thereat cannot be communicated. The Electoral Commission have issued additional information in this regard. Further clarification can be obtained from the Electoral Commission on 0300 068 3393.
If you need further information please see contact details below.
Kind regards,
Freedom of Information
Knowsley MBC
Archway Road
Huyton
Knowsley
Merseyside
L36 9UX
Dear Freedom of Information,
So, can you confirm that it is perfectly fine to film at election counts, as long as voting secrecy is maintained.
Yours sincerely,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council's handling of my FOI request 'Filming at local election counts'.
[ You have not responded to my request for clarification]
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/f...
Yours faithfully,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Mr Woods
Thank you for taking the time to contact us.
We will give you a full response within 10 working days. If this is not possible, we will write to you within this time to explain why and let you know how long a full response will take.
If you need any further information please see contact details above.
For your information I have attached the link to the complaint procedure, if you do not have access please contact the customer liaison team for a paper copy.
http://www.knowsley.gov.uk/get-in-touch/...
Freedom of Information
Knowsley MBC
Archway Road
Huyton
Knowsley
Merseyside
L36 9UX
Dear Mr Woods
In response to your clarification:
I can confirm that it is not permissible to film at the election count.
In addition to the information set out in the original response, the Returning Officer has issued the following directions which were set out in the letter to candidates and agents and/or covered at the Candidates and Agents Briefing Session:
Polling Day
Please note, to maintain the secrecy of the ballot, the Returning Officer will not allow any filming, interviewing or recording to take place within the polling station. In respect of any filming or interviewing taking place outside a polling station, voters must not be hindered or harassed and entrances to the polling station must not be obstructed.
Count
Attendance is based upon invitation by a candidate/election agent and names and addresses must be provided to the Returning Officer by Thursday 15 May Attendance based upon acceptable behaviour No photographic/recording equipment Use of mobile phones only outside the count venue
The Electoral Commission has issued additional information in this regard which can be obtained from the Commission's website or by telephoning the Electoral Commission on 0300 068 3393
Kind regards
KMBC Complaints
Customer Liaison Team
6th Floor Huyton Municipal Building
Archway Road
Huyton
L36 9YU
Dear KMBC Have your say,
I asked you for the RELEVANT LEGISLATION.
You have not supplied the requested information.
What is the relevant legislation that supports your statement that filming is not allowed election counts.
I am NOT asking you for legislation regarding the secrecy of the ballot, I am asking you for legislation that SPECIFICALLY prevents filming at election counts.
Filming proceedings at election counts, does NOT breach the secrecy of a ballot, UNLESS, ballot papers are directly filmed, the serial numbers on the papers are ALSO filmed, and the necessary ability to decipher these codes and match them to a voter are available, and ONLY then, IF ALL of those details together are made publicly available, THEN that would be a breach of secrecy.
All of this is simply not possible by filming. All of this anyhow, can be seen with the eyes of anyone in attendance.
So, can you confirm that it is perfectly fine to film at election counts, as long as voting secrecy is maintained.
If you say that the returning officer does not allow filming at election counts, then you will need to provide the relevant legislation which permits this?
Filming and breaching secrecy is simply NOT the same thing.
Yours sincerely,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council's handling of my FOI request 'Filming at local election counts'.
[ I asked you for the RELEVANT LEGISLATION.
You have not supplied the requested information.
What is the relevant legislation that supports your statement that
filming is not allowed election counts.
I am NOT asking you for legislation regarding the secrecy of the
ballot, I am asking you for legislation that SPECIFICALLY prevents
filming at election counts.
Filming proceedings at election counts, does NOT breach the secrecy
of a ballot, UNLESS, ballot papers are directly filmed, the serial
numbers on the papers are ALSO filmed, and the necessary ability to
decipher these codes and match them to a voter are available, and
ONLY then, IF ALL of those details together are made publicly
available, THEN that would be a breach of secrecy.
All of this is simply not possible by filming. All of this anyhow,
can be seen with the eyes of anyone in attendance.
So, can you confirm that it is perfectly fine to film at election
counts, as long as voting secrecy is maintained.
If you say that the returning officer does not allow filming at
election counts, then you will need to provide the relevant
legislation which permits this?
Filming and breaching secrecy is simply NOT the same thing. ]
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/f...
Yours faithfully,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Mr Woods
Thank you for taking the time to contact us.
We will give you a full response within 10 working days. If this is not possible, we will write to you within this time to explain why and let you know how long a full response will take.
If you need any further information please see contact details above.
For your information I have attached the link to the complaint procedure, if you do not have access please contact the customer liaison team for a paper copy.
http://www.knowsley.gov.uk/get-in-touch/...
Kind regards
KMBC Complaints
Customer Liaison Team
6th Floor Huyton Municipal Building
Archway Road
Huyton
L36 9YU
Dear Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council's handling of my FOI request 'Filming at local election counts'.
[ Today, is the date that 10 working days have passed and I have not received the requested information ]
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/f...
Yours faithfully,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Mr Woods
Thank you for your email, I have forwarded to the team dealing with the internal review requesting an update
Regards
KMBC Have your Say
Customer Liaison Team
6th Floor Huyton Municipal Building
Archway Road
Huyton
L36 9YU
Dear KMBC Have your say,
Still waiting..............
Yours sincerely,
Paul of the Woods Family
Thank you for your email, please accept this as acknowledgement of receipt of your complaint. You will be contacted within the next ten working days with either a response or update regarding progress of your complaint.
Please note if the issue raised is a service request, this will be passed on to the relevant service for action and contact with you will be made by the service directly.
Kind regards
Customer Liaison Team
Margaret Mills left an annotation ()
The law has just been changed to allow filming in the council meetings too
Dear Mr Woods
Thank you for your emails 3 June 2014. I apologise for the delay in replying. At the outset I would like to point out that in my opinion this is not a request for information held by the Council but rather a request for the Council to confirm its opinion on the legal position regarding the ability to film at an election count. For this reason it therefore falls outside the remit of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Having said that I am more than happy to respond to the issues raised in your email.
In relation to filming at election counts, although there is no legislation to specifically prevent filming at counts there is similarly no legislation that requires a Returning Officer to permit or allow filming by an individual or an organisation at an election count. As you are already aware a Returning Officer is responsible for determining all the arrangements for the holding of the election count and this includes amongst other things determining whether or not filming of the count should be permitted. In particular a Returning Officer is responsible for ensuring the requirement of secrecy under the specific duties set out in section 66(1)(a) and 66(2) of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (the full extent of the section is attached for your information). There is also a specific obligation on the Returning Officer set out in paragraph 45(4) of Schedule 1 to the Representation of the People Act 1983 requiring ballot papers to be counted facing upwards to prevent the number on the back of the ballot paper to be seen. Again this obligation supports the key principle of the secrecy of the ballot.
As the Returning Officer is the person ultimately responsible for the count arrangements it is their duty to ensure that secrecy is maintained so that a voter may feel secure in knowing that they will be ensured privacy in respect of their vote. Bearing in mind this overriding duty it is therefore for the Returning Officer to consider any requests to film at election counts and to determine what, if any, filming might be allowed and to specify any circumstances or conditions under which such filming may be undertaken. The Council does not therefore accept your view that anyone able to attend a count can film it without needing the permission of the Returning Officer so long as voting secrecy is maintained.
The Returning Officer is assisted in the arrangements for the count by guidance issued by the Electoral Commission. At no point does it say in the current guidance that filming of the count is permissible. As the Returning Officer is the person ultimately responsible for the count arrangements there would need to be a significant and sizeable change in current practice and procedure for the Returning Officer to depart from the existing position that no filming is permitted. As you are no doubt aware the present Government as part of its openness and transparency agenda has recently made regulations permitting the filming of Council meetings. I am in no doubt that if the Government had wished to extend this facility to election counts it would have done so. It is therefore telling to me that by not doing so it wishes the current practices and procedure of not filming election counts to remain. I suggest therefore that if you remain unhappy with the Council’s position that you raise this matter with your MP or directly with the Secretary of State and request a change in the legislation. Until such time as there is clear guidance or legislation permitting filming at an election count then, in order to maintain the secrecy of the ballot, the Council sees no reason why it should change its current policy on not permitting filming at an election count.
I trust this fully explains the Council’s policy.
Kind regards
KMBC Have your Say
Customer Liaison Team
6th Floor Huyton Municipal Building
Archway Road
Huyton
L36 9YU
Dear KMBC Have your say,
YOU SAID, "although there is no legislation to specifically prevent filming at counts there is similarly no legislation that requires a Returning Officer to permit or allow filming by an individual or an organisation at an election count."
My request was answered by your comment "although there is no legislation to specifically prevent filming"
If you are of the silly view that, "there is no legislation that requires a Returning Officer to permit or allow filming by an individual or an organisation at an election count."
You must also concede that there is also no legislation that requires a returning officer to have any say over whether someone films or not.
The simple act of filming does not in itself breach secrecy.
Please note, I will be filming at the next local election count.
Yours sincerely,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council's handling of my FOI request 'Filming at local election counts'.
Why do the FOI responses not have the name of the Council Officer who supplied the information/response
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/f...
Yours faithfully,
Paul of the Woods Family
Dear Mr Woods
Thank you for taking the time to contact us.
We will give you a full response within 10 working days. If this is not possible, we will write to you within this time to explain why and let you know how long a full response will take.
If you need any further information please see contact details above.
Kind regards
KMBC Have your Say
Customer Liaison Team
6th Floor Huyton Municipal Building
Archway Road
Huyton
L36 9YU
Dear Mr Woods
Our records indicate that your Freedom of Information Request F2014.03.138 relating to 'Filming at Local Election Counts' have been responded to on 16 April 2014.
In relation to your query of 'Why do the FOI responses not have the name of the Council Officer who supplied the information/response’. Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council receives, acknowledges and responds to all requests through a single process. It is the Council’s policy to issue all of its responses in this way from the Freedom of Information email account and not from a named officer.
Kind regards
Alma Wills
KMBC Have your Say
Designated Complaints Officer
6th Floor Huyton Municipal Building
Archway Road
Huyton
L36 9YU
443 3231
Dear KMBC Have your say,
Thank you Alma.
My complaint was not about the information requested. It was about the fact that Knowsley Council refuse to supply information to people unless they supply their name and yet Knowsley Council do not supply the names of Officers.
I trust in future all information furnished by KMBC will supply the name of the Council Officer who has given the information.
Yours sincerely,
Paul of the Woods Family
Thank you for your email, please accept this as acknowledgement of receipt of your complaint. You will be contacted within the next ten working days with either a response or update regarding progress of your complaint.
Please note if the issue raised is a service request/query, this will be passed on to the relevant service for action and contact with you will be made by the service directly.
Kind regards
Customer Liaison Team
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Gloria left an annotation ()
Paul
The council have now approved their own policy here:
http://councillors.knowsley.gov.uk/docum...
I do not know if this will apply to filming elections
Thanks
Gloria Jones