Lewisham Council is urging the borough’s European citizens to register to vote ahead  of this month’s election, as the deadline looms.

The May 23 vote will determine who is elected to represent the United Kingdom in the European Parliament, a vote which takes place every five years.

EU citizens must register before May 7.

It will be the second time voters will head to the polls this month, following the local council elections.

Each country is allocated a set number of seats, roughly depending on the size of its population.

Once elected, the MEPs will represent different regions of the country, again according to population.

Lewisham has more than 20,000 EU citizens, with 3,415, or 17 per cent, registered to vote.

Cllr Kevin Bonavia, Cabinet Member for Democracy, Refugees and Accountability said it was important for EU citizens to exercise their rights.

He said: “I am pleased that, for the moment at least, this country is still part of the EU, so it is important that all our residents have a chance to exercise their rights as EU citizens. That’s why Lewisham Council is encouraging everyone to make sure they are registered to vote by 7 May so they can have their say on who represents us in the European Parliament at the elections on 23 May.

“The long-running Brexit shambles has created huge uncertainty, not least for our residents who have other EU nationality. In order to vote in the UK for the European Parliament elections they need to confirm to the Council that they want to vote in this country. As a council, we have written to around 19,000 residents with other EU nationality and emailed all those that we can to explain what they need to by 7 May.”

He said Lewisham Council strongly supported remaining in the European Union, and had made calls for a confirmatory referendum that would give people the option to vote to remain in the EU.

More information about registering in the European elections can be found on the Lewisham Council website.