BLAENAU Gwent MP Nick Smith has attacked the Government’s voter registration changes after the number of voters in his constituency fell by more than 2,000.

The General Election in May will be the first to use the Individual Electoral Registration system. Previously, voters were registered by their head of household.

Blaenau Gwent Council have confirmed that at the start of December last year, 2,118 less people were registered to vote – a four per cent drop compared with figures prior to the changeover.

With official reports on the take-up across Britain due to be released in February, Mr Smith said Nick Clegg and the Coalition had ignored repeated warnings that this could happen.

He said: “Throughout history, the ability to vote is a principle people have fought and died for. If you are going to change the system, you have to give people every chance to take part.

“Instead, I am hearing about staff who are being bogged down in new processes instead of being able to get out there and knock on doors and diligently record voters onto the roll, as they have in the past.

“There are databases that could help boost accurate voter information, yet they’re not being used."

Elsewhere, the Wales Green Party is launching a campaign to let students know how to register.

Pippa Bartolotti, Wales Green Party leader and parliamentary candidate for Newport West, said: “Right now, 96 per cent of older people are registered to vote but only 50 per cent of young voters are registered.

"The future belongs to our young people, and it is pretty underhand to suddenly make it harder for them to vote."

A cabinet office spokesman said: “We are transforming electoral registration to make it fit for the 21st century.

"Individual Electoral Registration has replaced the outdated head of household voter registration system and is both increasing the accuracy of the register and giving people more control and ownership over the process.

“Things are proceeding to plan and nearly 90 per cent of electors have been automatically transferred to the new system without having to do anything – a higher rate than expected."