Mark is calling for overnight election counts to remain unchanged. Seeing the election results unfold through the cause of the night is an important tradition which allows voters to know the result quickly.

It is worrying that some Returning Officers in other parts of the UK have indicated their intention to move from overnight counts to counting the following day, without any prior consultation.

Mark commented:
 
"I think this is a bad idea. People in Scotland want to know who their local MP is as quickly as possible. The country wants to wake up and know whether they have a Labour Government or a Tory Government again.
 
"This system has worked well for many decades and I see no reason to change it now.
 
"Postal votes are opened and counted in advance of polling day so I don't understand why that argument is used to delay announcing who has won." 

Every UK General Election has been carried out on a Thursday since 1935, with the count held overnight. It would be a significant move away from that tradition to move to counts to the following day.  

A consultation on the issue has been carried out by the Interim Electoral Management Board for Scotland.