The British government hopes to introduce legislation to tackle electoral fraud in Northern Ireland before the next general election, the Northern Ireland Minister, Mr George Howarth, said yesterday.
The Ulster Unionist MP Mr William Thompson initiated a short debate on the issue in the Commons and said there was a feeling that London was "dragging its feet" on malpractice in the North.
Up to 10 per cent of the 38,000 postal vote applications during the 1997 general election were fraudulent, he said.