logo
Polls open in Ramsey and Port Erin by-elections

Polls open in Ramsey and Port Erin by-elections

BBC News6 days ago
Voting is under way in two local authority by-elections on the Isle of Man.Polling stations in both Port Erin and Ramsey South Ward will remain open until 20:00 BST.Port Erin Commissioners Offices and Ramsey Town Hall have been set up as polling stations.Eligible voters in Port Erin will be able to choose two new people to join the local authority, while in Ramsey there is only one vacant seat.
The elections are being held after the authorities failed to attract enough candidates at April's general election.
Candidates
Port Erin (two vacancies): James Cubbon, Karl Drinkwater and Fenella Gray Ramsey South Ward (one vacancy): Gillian Corlett, Christopher Martin and John Powell
Read more stories from the Isle of Man on the BBC, watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer and follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and X.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Scottish Greens official admits 'anomaly' in party election results
Scottish Greens official admits 'anomaly' in party election results

BBC News

time6 hours ago

  • BBC News

Scottish Greens official admits 'anomaly' in party election results

The Scottish Greens official who quit after overseeing the party's ranking of the candidates for the 2026 Scottish elections has said there was an "anomaly" in the Joester, who was the party's internal elections officer, said she had not spotted the issue when the figures were first sent to initially endorsed a statement from the party reassuring campaigners that there were "no realistic doubts" about the Joester now says she should not have given her backing amid concerns about how some votes were cast. Under the electoral system for Holyrood, the regional list vote involves parties ranking their higher an individual appears on the list, the better their chance is of becoming an have been raised by party members regarding a number of the internal include that of the Scottish Greens' current co-leader , and North East MSP Maggie Chapman who failed to secure top spot in her of the claims centre around how ballots were counted under the STV (single transferrable vote) system, where members rank candidates by a message to all party members, first reported by The Herald, Joester expressed regret at "going along with a statement yesterday reassuring people that there we no realistic doubts about the results when I was not sure that was the case".She also said that she had resigned from her position as she "hadn't done a good enough job".Joester insisted she did not know if there was a problem with the election results - and urged party members to wait until the external company that oversaw the elections had clarified their processes.A Scottish Greens spokesperson said "As said to members last night, we are speaking to the (election) provider to get more details about the approach used. These details will be shared with members in due course." In the Scottish Greens internal elections, Patrick Harvie, who is stepping down as co-leader, saw off a campaign to replace him as the party's top candidate in Glasgow at next year's Holyrood narrowly secured the top place on the Glasgow list, which is likely to deliver re-election to Holyrood.A slate of self-described "radical" Green members - who were critical of his time leading the party - had sought to replace other regional ballots, most sitting Green MSPs secured the top place on the candidates for the party's two co-leadership positions - Gillian Mackay, Ross Greer and Lorna Slater - all secured top spot in their three are defenders of the time the Greens spent in government with the North East MSP Maggie Chapman was ranked second, making re-election more has been placed behind activist Guy Ingerson - who stood against SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn in the Aberdeen South seat in last year's general came under fire earlier this year when she criticised the judiciary over the Supreme Court's ruling on the definition of a 2023, she expressed regret for a social media post claiming the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel was an act of "decolonisation", not "terrorism".

Human rights ‘not breached over election interference probe refusal'
Human rights ‘not breached over election interference probe refusal'

The Independent

time8 hours ago

  • The Independent

Human rights ‘not breached over election interference probe refusal'

The UK Government did not breach human rights laws by refusing to order an independent investigation into Russian interference in elections. The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) found there was no breach of measures aimed at ensuring free and fair elections after a long-running legal action backed by three former MPs. The Strasbourg court acknowledged there was evidence of a 'significant and ongoing threat' to the UK's democratic processes from Vladimir Putin's country, but said Westminster had taken action to respond to the danger. The case was lodged at the ECtHR in 2022 by three then-MPs, Labour's Sir Ben Bradshaw, the Green Party's Caroline Lucas and the SNP's Alyn Smith, after applications for a judicial review of Boris Johnson's decision not to order an investigation into Russian activities were declined by domestic courts. In a judgment published on Tuesday, the court ruled that the UK Government's response did not violate the right to free elections. The judgment said: 'While the Court does not underestimate the threat posed by the spreading of disinformation and the running of 'influence campaigns', their nature is nevertheless such that it is difficult to assess accurately the impact that they may have on individual voters and, by extension, on the outcome of a given election.' There was also a risk to freedom of expression if there were 'knee-jerk reactions' to debate during an election contest. 'There is a very fine line between addressing the dangers of disinformation and outright censorship,' the judgment said. Any actions taken by states 'to counter the risk of foreign election interference through the dissemination of disinformation and the running of influence campaigns' would have to be balanced against the right to freedom of expression under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. 'Therefore, while states should not remain passive when faced with evidence that their democratic processes are under threat they must be accorded a wide margin of appreciation in the choice of means to be adopted in order to counter such threats,' the judgment said. 'In the court's view, the United Kingdom's response to the threat of Russian election interference did not fall outside the wide margin of appreciation afforded to it in this area.' The case followed reports from the Commons Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee and the Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) which looked at alleged Russian disinformation campaigns, including during the 2016 Brexit referendum. The court noted that 'there were undoubtedly shortcomings in the Government's initial response' to the Russian threat but there were 'thorough and independent investigations' by the ISC and the DCMS committee.. The judgment also noted that following the publication of the ISC report in 2020 there had been new laws passed to help address the risk: the Elections Act 2022, the National Security Act 2023 ('the NSA 2023') and the Online Safety Act 2023. Following the judgment, Ms Lucas said: 'It's hugely significant that the court has found in favour of our case that foreign interference is a threat to our right to free and fair elections and that they recognise there will be cases when states do have a duty to investigate. 'And while it's clearly disappointing that they found that the Government had done enough, I've no doubt that this will continue to be contested. 'The bottom line is that we still cannot be assured that our democratic system is robust against foreign interference – and for as long as that is the case, we will continue to explore all possible avenues for remedy.' Tessa Gregory, a partner at Leigh Day – the law firm which represented the three former MPs, said: 'In an important judgment, which will have far-reaching implications, the court has accepted, contrary to the UK's submissions, that in order to safeguard citizens' right to free and fair elections, states will in certain circumstances have to take positive action against foreign interference in electoral processes including by investigating credible allegations. 'Our clients continue to think the UK has fallen short of protecting our democracy and are considering next steps in relation to the court's conclusion that there has been no violation of their right to free and fair elections.' A Government spokesman said: 'We note today's judgment, which found no violation. 'We are committed to safeguarding our electoral processes, which is why we recently announced tougher new rules on political donations to protect our elections from the growing danger of foreign interference. 'These changes will boost transparency and accountability in politics by closing loopholes that would allow foreign donors to influence elections. 'More broadly, national security is our first responsibility, and we have taken action to harden and sharpen our approach to threats – whether standing with Ukraine against Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, placing Russia on the enhanced tier of the foreign influence registration scheme, and working with allies to monitor and counter Russian submarines and ships in UK waters.'

First Reform member in Welsh Parliament after Tory defection
First Reform member in Welsh Parliament after Tory defection

Telegraph

time10 hours ago

  • Telegraph

First Reform member in Welsh Parliament after Tory defection

Reform UK now has its first representative in the Welsh Parliament after a defection from the Tories. Nigel Farage announced on Tuesday afternoon that Laura Anne Jones, the current member for South Wales East, had switched allegiances. Speaking at a press conference at the Royal Welsh Show, the Reform leader said: 'I am delighted to say that today is a big step forward for Reform UK in Wales.' The defection came as Reform steps up its efforts to win power in Wales at the Senedd elections scheduled to take place in May next year. Reform is aiming to end Labour's 26 years of domination in Wales and Mr Farage said his party was 'going all out to win'. Ms Jones said she had not informed the Conservative Party of her defection. Speaking alongside Mr Farage, Ms Jones said: 'After 31 years in the Conservative Party I have just suddenly felt that the Conservative Party was unrecognisable to me.' She added: 'I truly believe that I have joined a party in Reform UK that listens to people.' Ms Jones said that 'Wales is a complete mess' and she believed Mr Farage and Reform can 'take Wales forward into a great place'.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store