The Bishop of Leicester asked a question on government efforts to enable civic participation during a discussion on electoral systems and methods of voter registration on 3rd September 2026:
The Lord Bishop of Leicester: My Lords, democracy is of course about a lot more than simply voter participation. What are the Government currently doing to enable civic participation at this time, particularly by minoritised groups, which will aid in safeguarding our democracy?
Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab, DHCLG): I am grateful to the right reverend Prelate, because he enables me to answer in a better way the question that the noble Baroness, Lady Nicholson, asked me yesterday about how we are involving and engaging people in the democratic process. Electors’ attitudes and motivations are arguably more important than process issues in stopping them registering and voting, as I am sure the right reverend Prelate will be aware. The Electoral Commission, as I said, explored the reasons for that. Backed by a total of £2.5 million, the democratic engagement fund will provide grants of £1,000 to £50,000, with most awards expected to be around £25,000. We expect projects on that democratic engagement to be completed by January 2028, and we will be exploring many different ways of having better democratic engagement, particularly across groups that are less inclined to vote.
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