Independence vote ban on prisoners ‘will be legal’

A ban on prisoners voting in the Scottish independence referendum won’t fall foul of human rights laws, legal chiefs have said.

A group of serving prisoners have instructed lawyers to begin a case against Scottish ministers after last week’s ­referendum bill declared that no-one in jail on 18 September next year should be given a vote.

Leading human rights ­lawyer Tony Kelly claims the explicit ban runs counter to case law, and will mount a challenge against the bill if MSPs decide to pass it unaltered later this year.

But the Law Society of Scotland has said that the prohibition on prisoners voting in the referendum in Scotland should comply with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) because it is not a normal election.

The legislation setting out the franchise for the referendum says that prisoners will not be allowed to vote.

“Sick”

Michael Clancy, Director of Law Reform at the Law Society of Scotland said: “The Law Society of Scotland has considered this provision in light of judgements by the European Court of Human Rights, which ruled that a blanket ban on prisoner voting is incompatible with the Convention.

“However, these cases have referred to elections for a national legislature, not referenda. Whilst a challenge to the provision is entirely possible, the Law Society of Scotland considers such a challenge is unlikely to be successful.”

The society was responding to a call for evidence on the Scottish Independence Referendum (Franchise) Bill.

The Coalition Government at Westminster has been forced to draw up plans extending the right to vote to some prisoners - even though David Cameron has said the prospect makes him feel “sick.”

It followed a 2005 ruling by the European Court of Human Rights, which found the UK had breached the Convention by imposing a general ban, forced a rethink.