A booklet with manifestos from Mayoral candidates and a full
listing of all other candidates standing in London’s 1 May
elections will be arriving through the letterboxes of London’s 5.5
million registered voters from the end of this week.
To make sure as many people as possible know about the London
elections, London Elects produces and distributes an information
booklet. All registered voters in London will receive a copy in the
post before election day.
The booklet, titled ‘The Candidates – who they are, what they
say and how to vote’ contains manifestos from the Mayoral
candidates, information about how to vote and how the Mayor and
Assembly is elected and lists of all the candidates standing for
the London Assembly.
All the mayoral candidates had the opportunity to add their own
'mini-manifesto' to the booklet in return for £10,000 towards the
printing and distribution costs. Nine of the 10 candidates chose to
do so.
The booklet’s contents, including Mayoral manifestos, are
already available on the London Elects website, along with PDF and
audio versions.
The Greater London Returning Officer (GLRO) - Anthony Mayer -
determined the order of the manifestos by drawing lots.
London Elects issued guidance to the candidates on how they
should supply their manifestos and what content was acceptable. The
candidates were responsible for developing their manifestos but the
GLRO had final say on what could and could not be included in the
booklet.
London Elects will start to send out the
booklets to postal voters from 16 April and all registered London
voters should receive a booklet by 28 April.
Matt Bright, Communications Manager at London
Elects, said: “The election for the Mayor of London and the London
Assembly is the largest and most complex election in the UK. This
comprehensive booklet is being delivered to each of London’s 5.5
million voters to help them make an informed choice. Hopefully
voters will find it useful.”
The 32 page A5 booklet is branded with artwork
from the London Elects advertising campaign which is currently
running across the capital with the slogan: “Your choice. Make sure
nothing stops you voting on May 1”.
Matt added: “We want to make sure that, if you want to vote on 1
May, nothing stops you. If you've not voted before, you might not
know how to cast your vote or who the candidates are. We don't want
there to be barriers to those who want to make their voices heard
in London. To find out more, go to londonelects.org.uk or keep an
eye out for the booklet coming through your door.
PDF and audio versions are available on the London Elects
website.
Braille, large-print and audio versions of the booklet are also
available on request by calling 020 7983 4444 or info@londonelects.org.uk.
The booklet will also be available at local
libraries and borough council offices.
ENDS
For more information please contact Emma
Cassidy, Press Officer at London Elects, on 020 7983 4447 or
emma.cassidy@london.gov.uk
Notes to editors:
- London Elects is an independent team working directly for the
Greater London Returning Officer under separate budget and
reporting lines from the Greater London Authority. The Greater
London Returning Officer has overall responsibility, as laid out by
the Representation of the People Act 1983, for ensuring a fair and
accurate election.
- The Greater London Returning Officer has a statutory duty to
produce this booklet.
- All mayoral candidates are entitled to put an address in the
booklet if they choose to do so, and pay £10,000 towards print and
distribution.
- Candidates are forbidden by law from referring to other
Mayoral or Assembly candidates and their policies, and must use the
address to outline what they would do for Londoners if they gained
the mayoral job.
- The budget for the booklet is £1.5m including design, print
and distribution and producing the booklet in other formats.
- A total of 5.7m booklets are being printed – one for every
registered elector in London, plus copies for borough council
offices, polling stations and libraries.
- The booklet forms part of the information campaign to ensure
Londoners are aware of the elections and have all the information
they need to cast their vote, including advertising, PR and field
marketing and a website http://www.londonelects.org.uk/
and other publications.