Friday 12 February 2010

DAVID WILLIAMS SUPPORTS THE CAMPAIGN BY ‘SCOPE’ TO ENSURE THAT EVERYONE HAS ACCESS TO POLLING STATION ON ELECTION DAY

David Williams, Labour's Parliamentary Candidate for Crewe and Nantwich, has backed the campaign being run by ‘Scope’ to ensure that there is Access for All to polling stations on Election Day.

In the 21st Century you would think that disabled people would be able to vote independently and in secret like everyone else. At the 2005 General Election however, 68% of the polling stations across the country had one or more serious access barriers that could have prevented a disabled person from casting the vote.

David Williams has backed the ‘Polls Apart’ campaign being run by ‘Scope’ to ensure that disabled people have the same access to Britain’s democracy as everyone else and to make sure that the local polling stations in Crewe and Nantwich are fully accessible to local people with disabilities.

David said, “There are 10.6 million disabled people in Britain, that’s an average of around 15,000 disabled voters in each parliamentary constituency. I am calling on Cheshire East Council in the run-up to the General Election to make sure that each and every polling station throughout the Crewe and Nantwich constituency has suitable facilities for use by anyone with a disability.”

David went on to say, “Where a polling station does present difficulties, then the first and best option is to look for an alternative polling station in the area, but if this proves impossible, then there is a provision for the presiding officer to bring a ballot paper and the ballot box out of the polling station for someone who cannot walk from a car to the polling station.”

David added, “There is also the provision for anyone, for whatever reason, to request a Postal Vote, which will be sent direct to your home and can be completed and returned in a pre-paid envelope. The right to vote by post is no longer restricted to someone with a disability, or someone who is away on holiday. Anyone can now request a postal vote if they would prefer to vote in that way.”

David concluded by saying, “I am calling on Cheshire East Council to ensure that all these arrangements are in place in good time for the General Election.”

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