Sir Alistair Graham, Postal Voting and Wansbeck Elections?

In February 2007 Sir Alistair Graham, former General Secretary of the Civil service Union, wrote an article in the Sunday Times headed “Prepare for election fraud”. At the time of writing, Sir Alistair was the Chairman of the ‘Committee on standards in public life’.

Sir Alistair declared that “The introduction of postal voting on demand was the moment when the electoral system came under threat.”

Wansbeck; a good example of Sir Alistair’s fears:

Before May 1999, the composition of Wansbeck District Council was 46 Labour with no opposition. Then a political earthquake took place when Labour lost 21 seats to the Liberal Democrats. The local Labour Party members reacted in disbelief.

After the election and prior to the first meeting of the new council the newly elected Councillors were astonished to find that the “Acting Chief Executive” had been appointed as “Chief Executive” by an “Emergency Committee” of three Labour Councillors. This was against the orders and conventions of Local Government because, throughout the land, the position of Chief Executive is a matter for the “Full Council”.

To further compound this abuse of power, the three members of the “Emergency Committee” were all Labour and one of the members had not been re-elected? This event was the first in a long catalogue of blatant abuse thereafter.

The next elections were due in May 2003 when the Liberal Democrat group were confident of winning more seats and taking control. In November 2002 there was a bye election in Haydon ward in Ashington. The Liberal Democrat candidate won easily to the consternation of the Labour Group.

Without any discussion by the Councillors an application was made by Wansbeck District Council to participate in an “All Postal” ballot for the May 2003 Wansbeck District Council election.

The election was a farce. In the week before the election the Chief Executive, the Returning Officer, declared that he knew the result? At the count, the Labour candidates were obviously very sure of themselves. The number of “spoiled” ballot papers was a matter of great concern. Only 8 of the Liberal Democrats were elected. As experienced canvassers the result for the Lib Dems was  “inexplicable”?

The morning after the count one of our elected Lib Dems, Michael Kirkup, who had been declared as a winner at the count the night before, received a phone call to say that a mistake had been made and he was not elected? How did they know this? The votes had all been bagged and transported to the Council Offices in Ashington after the count had taken place? Is it  legal to tamper with the votes after a count has been concluded?

The concerns expressed over postal voting are well founded. The Labour Party simply could not afford to lose control over Wansbeck District Council? It is a pity that Sir Alistair Graham was not around in 2003?

Alan Thompson

26.04.2020