to think it shouldn't be illegal not be on electoral roll and the Gov shouldn't proft ....

[rebelmum1]

..from selling my personal data to 3rd parties/junk mail and anyone else who wants to know my details..

Me?

I'd happily vote, but there are certian people who i'd rather didn't know where i live.

When people can no longer search the info (any people) i'll be on it again.

Oh I'd like to vote.

But not enough to put my data in the hands of anyone who wants to look it up.

Effectively, we have to pay for our right to vote with a loss of privacy, which I think is terrible.

On this one they make it clear that it is the edited register that is searched, not the full one.

Well, not trusting local authorities with the information is a different matter to them selling it.

I have opted out of the edited register. I can not be found by searching (I tried!).

Lots of people don't see the opt out or don't know what it is and their data is sold without them realising. I'm not convinced the data is secure and they wont sell it, when does the opt out expire, you have to trust it gets on the right list. Plus it is wrong in my view to make not submitting the data illegal.

They haven't made it law that you must vote yet have they?

Well, the opt out is very obvious on my form and on the online registration I used and, IIRC, on the phone registration option.

I'm astonished that you are so blaze about your personal details and are happy for it to be ilegal not to supply them. I nearly missed the tickbox and did a double take when I read it.

I'm astonished you are so paranoid.

You are legally required to return the form, you can, I imagine, simply cross your name off entirely and therfore lose your vote if you are so paranoid you do not wish your details to be on the electoral roll at all.

This is actually an awful thing.

You can 'opt out' by ticking the edited register part, this means that when the council sells the roll to advertisers your name won't go and it won't be searchable online.

However, the information will still appear to anyone who goes to look at the registers in person, albeit in a different section.

A woman who was stalked by someone (it was in the national news) was repeatedly found by the weirdo threatening to kill her because of this. Eventually she just decided to risk the fine rather than be killed by him.

Soupdragon, if you've never been stalked you simply cannot imagine the horror and fear that it causes.

I definitely think that I should not be forced to have my details registered on this horrible register until they make my details COMPLETELY private.

You're not forced to have your details on it, you can remove them. I removed Hs when he moved out. Just crossed him off the list.

Lol. He moved out!

He would have been forced by law to register at the place he moved to.

I used to belong to a social club which used to use the local electoral rolls for marketing purposes - one person would go to the library and look up say Acacia Avenue Anytown and just write down the house numbers which had people of the right ages listed as living there so we knew which houses to post our flyers into. Anyone can do it although it's probably not strictly legal using the data in that way (we had to be discreet).

I can't find anywhere that states you have to be registered to vote. You legally have to return the form, you do not have to be on it.

Here is the legislation.

I havent looked through it properly yet (it is v v boring and hard to get through) but will do carefully at some point.

Yes but you have to return the form signed, saying that you have truthfully declared who is living at the property.

There was a huge tv program about it, mainly saying how unfair the law is.

I just ignore the letters.

I mean, if I'm not on the register they won't know who to prosecute anyway.

They will know, as they ultimately access the Council tax records, annoyingly.

And in my area they send irritating busybodies round knocking on the door.

It's outrageous.

The only way out, is to risk the huge fine.

Gotta go to bed now, I'll check this thread in the morning

LOL @ lobby your MP to not be on the electoral register, therefore not be able to vote, I'm sure that'll be top of his surgery list!

Yep, that's the frustrating thing