Cardiff Council has been required to deliver voting packs by hand following a printing error that resulted in nearly 1,400 ballots not reaching applicants.

A council spokesperson has revealed that due to the print run for supplementary voting packs not being completed last week, 1,388 packs were initially not delivered to Cardiff electors in the Caerdydd Ffynnon Taf and Caerdydd Penarth constituencies.

The local authority said it later received supplies of postal vote packs for the addresses impacted by the fault, with council staff hand delivering the packs to electors, as well as using priority mail in some cases.

‘Our immediate priority is to enable members of the electorate affected by the issue with the supplementary voter pack print run to exercise their democratic right’, the spokesperson said.

However, the council has confirmed that existing postal vote arrangements cannot be cancelled by those away from home, meaning they cannot apply for an emergency proxy.

‘The legislation in this area is very specific, and an emergency proxy may only be appointed where one of the following circumstances applies and arose after the ordinary proxy deadline’, the statement adds.

Emergency proxy could be appointed if after the regular proxy deadline, any of the following situations became applicable: the elector has a medical condition, illness or disability, the elector is a mental health patient detained under civil powers, or if the elector cannot attend the polling station in person due to their occupation.

‘The council regrets the inconvenience experienced by those affected and remains fully focused on ensuring that the election is conducted effectively and in accordance with all Electoral Commission requirements’, the statement adds.