THE official register of all those who voted in the crucial Glenrothes by-election in November was lost within days of being handed over by the returning officer to the sheriff clerk in Kirkcaldy, it has been revealed.

The loss has prompted an investigation by the Scottish Court Service, but Tricia Marwick, the SNP MSP for Central Fife, yesterday called for an independent inquiry.

"The marked registers are an essential element of any election campaign. They allow a check of who voted, but not how they voted, to confirm that the election was conducted properly," she said.

"Without these records there is no evidence of either a fair or unfair election and that undermines the confidence of everyone who took part."

She added: "It is almost beyond belief that a by- election which attracted media coverage throughout the UK, which delivered a surprise result and had a much higher turnout than anticipated now has no records to show who actually voted.

"There now needs to be the fullest independent inquiry."

Labour responded angrily, accusing her of "an extreme case of sour grapes and dirty tricks rolled into one", adding: "Ms Marwick's comments are an insult to the intelligence of Fifers.

"The marked register is provided for the convenience of political parties. The people have spoken, and the SNP must accept they lost."

Within a fortnight of the election, in which Labour defied the pundits by holding with a majority of 6737, local SNP officials approached Kirkcaldy sheriff court inquiring about the cost of buying a photocopy of the marked-up register.

This is common practice in politics. All the copies of the marked registers from every polling station are brought together by the returning officers, sealed and delivered to the local sheriff clerk. The law is about to be changed on this, making the storing of the register for a year a matter for the returning officer.

Parties can ask to see the original and make their own copy by hand on to a blank register, or they can ask to buy a photocopy. This is useful in any election post-mortem as it shows who voted, although not how they voted.

But in theory it could show up anomalies when compared with the parties' own canvass returns, such as someone voting who was believed to be dead or who had moved away.

"No-one is suggesting anything of this kind happened at Glenrothes, but without the marked-up register it will remain impossible to tell," said Ms Marwick.

The SNP say they asked several times over December and January before being told it was lost.

A spokesman for the Scottish Court Service said: "Despite comprehensive searches for this document, we have been unable to locate the marked register requested within Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court.

"We can confirm that the Sheriff Clerk at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court took receipt of these items following the Glenrothes by-election in November and that the voting papers for this election, which were deposited at the same time, are available. This is deeply regrettable and we are investigating the circumstances relating to this loss."

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