Staffing cuts could delay election result by 24 hours

General election night could become a victim of the government spending squeeze.

The Ministry of Justice is proposing to slash the number of temporary staff hired for polling day and to replace rural polling stations with postal votes. The department also wants to cut the staffing at counts - raising fears that the election result could be delayed by at least 24 hours.

MPs have already warned that council budget cuts threaten to delay the announcement of the election winners. Unlike other European nations, Britain normally gets a result in the early hours after polling day as staff count through the night.

However, hiring temporary staff on night rates is expensive. Cutting election staff and temporary polling stations could save up to £10million and would not need legislation.

Ken Ritchie, of the Electoral Reform Society, said: "The health of the democratic process is more important than saving peanuts."