Plymouth City Council "forced" to sell voters' details

Plymouth City Council has been "forced" to sell the contact details of over 74,000 Plymouth residents to several organisations, according to research by a UK privacy and civil liberties campaigner.

The details, as part of the edited register, were sold to six buyers including Opinion Leader, a market research group which conducts postal and telephone surveys.

Several other authorities in the south west have sold their edited registers, including Exeter City Council, West Devon District Council and Cornwall Council.

Authorities are required to make the edited register available for sale.

A Plymouth City Council spokesperson said: “All Councils need to follow the statutes and regulations relating to electoral registration. The Electoral Commission website sets out the legal position and clearly indicates that there are two versions of the electoral register and that the edited version has to be available for general sale and can be used for commercial activities such as marketing.

“We provide an ‘opt out’ box on our registration form for residents who wish their name to be kept off the edited version of the electoral register.”

The news comes from research by privacy campaigners, Big Brother Watch which revealed 307 local authorities across the UK had sold contact details from the edited electoral register in the five years 2007-2012.

Big Brother Watch states that very few people within these authorities knew that they could be removed from the edited register; while many people had temporarily opted out, comparatively few had done so permanently.

The edited register - which contains details including name, address, nationality and age - is taken from the electoral register and can be opted out of at any time by contacting your Electoral Registration Officer.

Director of Big Brother Watch Nick Pickles said: "Registering to vote is a basic part of our democracy and should not be a back door for our names and addresses to be sold to anyone and everyone.

"Many people don't realise that the pizza shops and estate agents drowning their doorsteps with junk mail are able to do so because their local council is forced to sell the names of every voter who fails to tick the right box when they register to vote."

Plymouth City Council is currently running a campaign called Don't Lose Your Voice, supported by The Plymouth Daily, to encourage people to sign up to the electoral register. The campaign reminds Plymouth residents that by not being on the register, they not only lose their right to have a say, they will also be affected when applying for credit; whether it’s a loan, mortgage or a mobile phone contract.

For more infomation on the full and edited electoral register and how to opt out visit: http://www.ico.org.uk/for_the_public/topic_specific_guides/electoral_register.

To register, visit http://www.plymouth.gov.uk/homepage/councilanddemocracy/electoral/electoralregistration.htm.