East Dulwich voters still awaiting postal vote

With just six days until polling day, some are concerned they will not be able to vote by post

Voters in south-east London have expressed concern that they have not received their postal ballots less than one week before polling day.

Those living in the seats of Dulwich and West Norwood and the newly created seat of Lewisham West and East Dulwich have reported not receiving their ballots ahead of Thursday's general election.

Tina Thorpe, who lives in East Dulwich, said: "People died to give me the vote and now Royal Mail is denying me that democratic right."

The Electoral Commission said it was "not uncommon for all postal ballots to not have arrived at this point" while Royal Mail said it could confirm "all votes that enter our network are being delivered".

'Right to vote'

The BBC has previously reported on issues with post not arriving in SE22, sometimes for weeks, leading to missed hospital appointments and increased fines.

In a local forum, one resident posted on Thursday that "the postal service in this area is simply not fit for purpose".

Ms Thorpe, who is waiting for a hip replacement and wishes to vote in Lewisham West and East Dulwich, said "everyone has a right to vote".

Tina Thorpe says some people have been left unable to vote

She said she knew of at least one person who will be unable to vote as their ballot paper had not arrived before their holiday.

"I'm concerned that we might not have received the literature from the candidates that's delivered by the postal service," she said.

"Neighbours appear to have received different amounts.

"I just want my vote to count. The whole world is going to vote and I can't."

Southwark Council said it had processed 50,518 postal votes for the general election so far.

It added it understood there had been some delays in delivering some ballot papers in SE22 and other areas.

"We have raised this at a senior level with the Royal Mail," a spokesman said.

"They have stated they are confident they will be able to deliver all outstanding ballot papers in time for recipients to vote in the general election."

The authority added it would monitor the situation.

'Recognise the pressures'

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We have a specialist elections team that plans every aspect of the elections delivery programmes and works closely with local authorities to ensure everything runs as smoothly as possible.

"We have investigated concerns and can confirm all votes that enter our network are being delivered.”

An Electoral Commission spokesperson said if a voter's postal ballot pack did not arrive in time, voters could request a replacement from their local authority.

If voters were concerned the postal vote would not be sent back in time, they could hand in their postal pack to their polling station on polling day.

“We recognise the pressures on the postal voting system due to the holiday season," the spokesperson added.

"Following the election, we will undertake research with voters and electoral administrators to understand their experiences at this poll."