Referendum question research

By law, we must comment on the intelligibility of UK, national and regional referendum questions, and some local government referendum questions. This is a requirement of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 and the Referendums (Scotland) Act 2020.

In this context, we mean referendums where voters are asked to vote on a proposal that government has put forward.

At this type of referendum, voters are given a ballot paper that contains the question or questions and at least two possible responses to choose from. How many responses voters can vote for depends on the voting system used at that referendum.

We have developed these guidelines to:

• help us assess how intelligible a proposed question is
• help people draft intelligible referendum questions

In this context, ‘question’ includes the question, the responses, and any statement that comes immediately before the question.
 

A referendum question should present the options clearly, simply and neutrally.

It should be:

• easy to understand
• to the point
• unambiguous

It should avoid:

• encouraging voters to consider one response more favourably than another
• misleading voters

We will use the following checklist to help us assess how intelligible a question is.

• Is the question written in plain language – using short sentences (around 15–20 words), simple and direct wording, and familiar terms without jargon or technical language?
• Is the question written in neutral language, avoiding words that suggest a judgement or opinion, either explicitly or implicitly?
• Is the information contained in the question factual, describing the question and the options clearly and accurately?
• Does the question avoid assuming anything about voters’ views?

As well as looking at the question ourselves, we will gather evidence to help us with our assessment. This may include:

• carrying out research with the public  
• asking for advice from experts on accessibility and plain language
• talking to other people, for example political parties and campaign groups associated with the referendum, and  
• other key groups or individuals who have an interest in the referendum and its outcome

We will publish the research reports and a summary of the other evidence we have gathered and used in our assessment.  

If you have any questions or feedback about these guidelines, you can contact us.