The Local Government Act 2000 provides that electors in our area can petition us to hold a referendum on whether the local authority should change to a different form of governance. Such petition must be signed by at least 5% of the electors in the local authority's area.
Verification Number
It is a legal requirement for the Proper Officer for each local authority area to publish the figure. The figure represents 5% of the number of electors in the area. This is referred to as the Verification Number.
The Verification Number is published each year during February. It is applicable between 1 April and 31 March following publication.
In any given year, there is a short period when there is one of 2 figures that can be used. This is between publication of the number and 31 March that same year. During that time, the alternative number that can be used is one that was published the previous February. Councils must use the lower of these 2 numbers as the Verification Number for any petition submitted during that period.
You can download the current Publication of Verification notice.