GLRO 21-05 Website updates for the 2021 Elections

1.1 The London Elects website informs users when, where and how they can vote in the Mayor of London and London Assembly Elections.

1.2 A new London Elects website was built in 2019, as the existing website was built on old technology which would no longer be supported, didn’t meet regulatory accessibility requirements and wasn’t built to be viewed effectively on mobile devices, an ever growing source of traffic.

1.3 The new website was launched in October 2019 ahead of the 2020 elections.

1.4 The new website work is able to be preserved from 2020 to 2021 however, prior to postponement we had planned in work for some bug and accessibility testing/fixes. These will still need to be carried out now before the new 2021 election date.

1.5 We carried out penetration/security testing in 2019/2020 but we have been advised to conduct this again due to advances in technology in the year. These tests check for current vulnerabilities and ensure the site is resilient to cyber-attacks.

1.6 Work needs to be carried out to ensure any updates to the screens that show elections progress and results in the count centres are, as much as is possible, consistent with the progress and results information displayed on the website. This is in the interests of showing consistent information across different touch points, so Londoners and media receive the same information however they choose to view it.

1.7 Potential website development work may be required to communicate any changes to the delivery of the elections as a result of COVID-19, for example, information about postal voting or safety information.

1.8 In 2020 the sum of £150,000 was spent on the following:

• onboarding and discovery - £19,311;

• development - £67,433;

• user research - £1,250;

• accessibility testing - £5,062;

• penetration/security testing - £1,800;

• TG resources (tester and delivery manager) - £54,901.

1.9 The remaining budget was £241.

1.10 The exact amount to be spent on the website is subject to the GLRO being satisfied with the detailed proposals to maintain and improve the website.

2.1 The London Elects website is there to inform users of when, how and where they can vote.

2.2 We need to ensure the website is robust, clear, accessible and secure, so all users can access the information they require and can vote.

4.1 Under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, as a public authority the GLA must have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, harassment and victimisation, and any conduct that is prohibited by or under the Equality Act, and to advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

4.2 While we made sure the website we launched with was fully accessible, the live feed results pages weren’t ready to test at the time. We’ve now carried out accessibility testing on these pages and need to fix some issues that arose so that on count day, the site is fully accessible to all users.

4.3 The site needs to be constructed to fully meet the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018, which aim to make websites (and mobile applications) of public sector bodies more accessible to users, particularly persons with disabilities.

Key risks and issues

3.1 COVID-19: The key risk for the 2021 elections is the uncertainty created by COVID-19. Depending on how the pandemic progresses there is the possibility of changes to the way the election is run. Should we need to emphasise communication around a change in voting mechanism this may require further work for the website.

3.2 Security risk: The website was last given a full security test in early 2020. Since then, other risks and ways to breach the website have been created by hackers. Therefore, it has been recommended we carry out a full penetration/security round of testing in early 2021 ahead of the elections. If we don’t carry out new security testing, then the site could be open to attack.

5.1 GLRO approval is being sought for further expenditure of up to £60,000 to cover the extra costs needed on the London Elects website as a result of the postponement of the 2020 elections. These costs are outlined in section 1 above.

5.2 This brings the total budget and expenditure approval for London Elects website cost to £210,000 (original budget approved to up £150,000 via GLRO-20-08 plus this new budget of £60,000). The budget of £210,000 takes account of the value of spend to date.

5.3 The additional £60,000 cost of the London Elects website will be funded from the Elections budget and this will be contained within the Elections reserve. It is also in line with MD2695 that approved £10m allocated from GLA Group reserves to Elections reserve.

6.1 The proposals are consistent with and support the activities of the GLRO in the 2021 GLA elections.