MSPs demand to run Holyrood elections

MSPs are calling for reforms to allow Scottish Ministers to run future Holyrood elections, claiming it will prevent the chaos of last year's vote.

SNP, Conservative and LibDem MSPs are all expected to support the transfer of powers in a debate to be held at the Parliament this week.

If the move went ahead, the rules governing the elections of MSPs would be controlled by the Scottish Government and not Westminster.

However, Labour chiefs claim the plan is "rushed" and are insisting further lessons be learnt about last year's fiasco before any decision is made.

In unprecedented scenes last May, more than 100,000 ballot papers were spoiled mostly because confused voters found the arrangements too complex.

As well as holding the Holyrood elections and local government elections on the same day, the Government altered the ballot paper so that both Holyrood votes were contained on the same sheet of paper.

In a report last year, Canadian election expert Ron Gould said sweeping changes were required. He said the current system – where Edinburgh runs the local government election, and London runs the Holyrood vote – should be ended, with one body given control. He said the Scottish Government would be "the logical entity".

First Minister Alex Salmond has seized on that recommendation and will now argue for immediate transfer of powers so that his administration is in charge of the next poll in 2011.

A Scottish Government source said: "We expect the debate to focus on the need to transfer responsibility for running the Scottish Parliament elections from Westminster to Holyrood, in order to ensure their future smooth operation. Given that this was the first recommendation of the Gould Report, we believe that it should be possible to achieve parliamentary support for this commonsense reform."

Both the Tories and the LibDems are understood to support the moves. Along with support from the Greens, this would ensure that the SNP plan is supported. However, Labour figures last night said the Government was being too hasty in demanding change.

Westminster ministers are currently consulting local authorities on the detail of any proposed changes for 2011.

A Scotland Office source said: "The objective we have is to restore public confidence. It is premature to rush into this move. The Gould report made a number of recommendations and it is noticeable that the SNP government have picked out the only one that is to do with the constitution."

The impasse may lead to another cross-Border row, as the SNP will be sure to press their case for immediate change.

First Minister Alex Salmond has already written to Gordon Brown expressing his "disappointment" that Scottish Secretary Des Browne has not yet accepted a transfer of powers. Salmond told MSPs last year that the situation whereby Westminster ran the Holyrood election was "absurd".

However, Browne insists he wants to study the evidencebefore making any changes.

Scottish Labour MSP Andy Kerr said: "We are happy to consider all of the recommendations made by Mr Gould but that we should allow the Parliament and its committees to examine the matter fully and make subsequent recommendations."

Former Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander has backed one recommendation by Gould, to appoint an elections tsar in Scotland, who would administer the election.