A major overhaul is being proposed of the way in which standards are protected in universities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The plans could mean the end of regular cycles of inspections of universities.
These "reviews" could be replaced by a more risk-based system, with a stronger emphasis on the outcomes for students, such as employment after graduation.
The higher education funding councils, launching the plans, say they want "student needs at the centre".
But Michael Gunn, chairman of the Million+ group of new universities, said there would be concerns if the end result was losing "an independent external quality assurance system".
The proposals are intended to move away from a "process-driven", tick-box approach to checking standards in universities.
Instead, there would be less emphasis on regular external institutional reviews and more focus on "outcomes" affecting students, such as drop-out rates, feedback from the National Student Survey and graduates' employment prospects.
It would mean that established universities might not face the type of review carried out by the higher education watchdog, the Quality Assurance Agency.
The risk-based approach would mean that more attention would be focused on newer, less-established providers - or in cases where particular concerns had been raised.
Dame Shirley Pearce, who chaired the steering group, said there needed to be a quality assessment system that "pays greater attention to outcomes rather than process, is risk-based rather than formulaic".
It will put greater responsibility on governing bodies of universities to ensure the quality of "students' academic experience" and to show that they respond to problems within their own institutions.
There will also be strengthening of the system of "external examiners", where academics from other universities check on the standard of degrees being awarded.
The Russell Group of leading universities backed a move towards a more risk-based approach, calling for a system that reduced the regulatory bureaucracy for "high-performing institutions".
But the proposals for maintaining quality will also have to incorporate plans expected to be announced by the government for ensuring the quality of teaching.
The Conservatives' election manifesto promised the creation of a "teaching excellence framework" - which would assess teaching standards in the way that the "research excellence framework" is used to compare the quality of university research.
This would require a way of comparing teaching in universities - and the higher education funding councils' report notes that the government is anticipating a "cyclical, external, independent, peer review" to make this possible.
"Excellent teaching and learning is a crucial element of a world-leading and internationally competitive higher education system, and a key priority for this government," said Universities Minister Jo Johnson.
There have been questions about how the Quality Assurance Agency would fit into the proposed overhauled review system and plans for assessing teaching standards.
Chief executive Anthony McClaran said: "The future of UK higher education and its reputation for quality must be based on the key principles of independent, external peer review in partnership with providers and students."
The plans for a different way of checking on quality comes at a time of increasing consumer pressure from students.
The increase in tuition fees has brought into sharper focus value-for-money questions about teaching standards, contact hours and how degree standards compare between different institutions.
An annual survey published this month by the Higher Education Policy Institute indicated that less than half of students believed they had had good or very good value for money from their courses.
There have also been questions about the quality and reliability of some new higher education providers.
There were concerns earlier this year from the Public Accounts Committee about an "abuse of public money", when ineligible overseas students had been accessing funding for courses in private colleges.
The quality assessment plans have been presented by the higher education funding councils for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. But even if the plans are adopted in England, Wales and Northern Ireland could go in different directions.
Scotland's universities operate under a different regulatory system.


Seven staff members at a Kent young offenders centre have been suspended after filmed evidence of abuse was presented by the BBC.

The staff were working at the Medway Secure Training Centre in Rochester, managed by security firm G4S.
The allegations - uncovered by Panorama - involve unnecessary force, foul language and a cover-up.
Paul Cook of G4S said he was "shocked and appalled" and was supporting a police investigation.
However, G4S has written to the BBC to try to stop Panorama from broadcasting the undercover footage, arguing that the filming was unauthorised and illegal.
The claims relate to 10 boys aged 14 to 17.
The centre holds 56 children, mainly boys, aged 12 to 17.  It is not allowed to take any more while the investigation takes place.
Mr Cook, managing director of G4S children's services, told BBC Radio Kent he was informed of the allegations on 30 December and referred them that day to the Medway Child Protection team and the police.
He said the BBC had referred to "staff hurting and inappropriately restraining young people, using foul and abusive language and failing to report... their actions".
Among the allegations uncovered by Panorama and now subject to investigation are that Medway staff:
Mr Cook said the seven members of staff named in a Panorama document sent to him were immediately suspended.
Safeguarding had also been stepped up at the centre while the investigation takes place, he added.
The Howard League, which campaigns for penal reform, tweeted the allegations were "extremely concerning", adding it had legal clients at the centre.
Tweeting in a personal capacity, its CEO Frances Crook said she was pleased Panorama had investigated abuse in G4S homes.
She added: "@TheHowardLeague has represented children who've had serious injuries in G4S secure children's homes. It demands public concern."
Medway had a troubled start.  Within months of opening in 1998 there'd been a serious disturbance, security breaches and mass staff resignations.
In recent years conditions appeared to have settled down. An Ofsted inspection report in September 2014 rated Medway as "good with some outstanding features".  Inspectors said the centre was "orderly" and "calm"; young people were said to feel safe.
The evidence gathered by Panorama seems to paint a different picture and will raise questions about G4S's suitability for looking after some of Britain's most troubled, vulnerable and violent teenagers after it was stripped of its contract for managing Rainsbrook secure training centre in Northamptonshire in 2015.
There are also questions for those who regularly monitor Medway - did they have any concerns and did they alert the authorities?
Kent Police said in a statement: "All necessary safeguarding measures have been taken and inquiries are ongoing."
The Youth Justice Board said it had increased its monitoring of the centre and increased the presence of its independent advocacy service, delivered by Barnardo's.
Deborah Coles, who is the director of the charity Inquest, which helps people bereaved by a death in custody, said in any other setting the treatment "would be child abuse".
"That it took undercover filming to reveal the mistreatment of imprisoned children points to the culpable failure of monitoring and oversight by the YJB and G4S," she said.
"Following the deaths of two children in 2004 following the use of force, assurances were made that the culture and practices would be changed and yet the abuses continue.
"This points to a lack of accountability and culture of impunity.
"It is clear these institutions are incapable of reform and must be closed down."
The Panorama programme Teenage Prison Abuse Exposed will be broadcast on Monday, 11 January on BBC One at 20:30 GMT.


Leicester climbed to third in the Premiership table after hanging on for a narrow win over Bath on a foul afternoon at rain-lashed Welford Road.

England prop Dan Cole claimed the try which clinched it six minutes from time just after Bath were reduced to 14 men.
Tigers defied the weather to fight back from a try by England's in-form Anthony Watson as they led 11-5 at the break.
But the highlight of the game was Leicester left winger Telusa Veainu's stunning 80-metre interception try.
Tommy Bell failed with his conversion but did improve Cole's try, as well as also landing three out of five penalty attempts in difficult kicking conditions, while England stand-off George Ford slotted two penalties.
Both sides had to contend with savage conditions, driving wind and rain almost throughout. Kicking at goal was not easy, which may have accounted for the visitors' late decision to squander a kickable penalty, and a possible losing bonus point, by opting to kick for the corner.
But they had been hampered by the loss of sin-binned debutant David Denton for the last eight minutes - just seven minutes after coming off the bench. Two minutes after his yellow card, following more Bath indiscipline at a driving line-out, Cole crashed over for the clinching try - the 28-year-old 56-times capped England man's first try in 78 appearances.
Bath have not won at Welford Road in the Premiership since 2003 - but they made a bright start when, following the loss of injured home full-back Matthew Tait after a first-minute tackle, a rapid break created the space for lively full-back Watson to go in at the left corner.
Ford missed with his kick from the left touchline before Bell was more successful with his first penalty attempt. Then came the game's highlight, when Veainu intercepted prop Nick Auterac's pass before galloping down the left to score. Bell again missed the kick but was then successful with a penalty attempt to earn an 11-5 lead at the interval.
Ford wiped out that lead with two early second-half penalties before Tigers lock Ed Slater received the game's first yellow card
Bath, however, failed to cash in on their man advantage. Bell's next penalty attempt fell short and wide before he did finally land a third three-pointer to put his side 14-11 up. And no sooner than Bath had been reduced to 14 men following Denton's yellow card than the Tigers struck.
A video verdict ruled that Cole had managed to keep hold of the ball and ground correctly, allowing Bell to add the extras.
Leicester Tigers director of rugby Richard Cockerill:
"I am delighted for the players that they found a way to win because we played pretty poorly at times. But our guts, attitude and trust got us over the finishing line.
"Dan Cole probably came back from the World Cup with a dent to his confidence. He's had a bit of criticism but there's always speed bumps along the way in life. But Leicester is the place to come back to.
"We just got on with it and the lads took the mickey out of him. Coley is back among friends. He's a man of few words who likes to work his way through it in his own way and he has done that very well.
"Coley is not that old. He's got a lot of rugby left in him. He has been the standard at tight head for four or five years. There are young guys coming through but he will get better as time goes on."
Bath head coach Mike Ford:
"We are better than we showed here. I was disappointed to go in at half time losing. We were the better side. The interception was a turning point.
"We got back to 11-11 and had great possession and position to take the game by the scruff of the neck. We never took those opportunities."
On the decision not to take the kick at goal for a bonus point:
"We will analyse it on Monday but the call was to go for goal.
Leicester Tigers: Tait; Thompstone, Betham, Smith, Veainu; Bell, B Youngs; Ayerza, T Youngs, Cole, Slater, Fitzgerald, Williams, O'Connor, McCaffrey.
Replacements: Catchpole for Tait (1), Harrison for B Youngs (48), Croft for McCaffrey (57), Bai for Catchpole (65),  Bateman for T Youngs (76), Aguero for Ayerza (78), Balmain for Cole (78).
Not Used: Kitchener.
Sin Bin: Slater (52).
Bath: Watson; Rokoduguni, Banahan, Eastmond, Agulla; Ford, Matawalu; Auterac, Batty, Thomas, Hooper, Ellis, Garvey, Louw, Houston.
Replacements:  Cook for Matawalu (54), Catt for Auterac (60), Lahiff for Thomas (61), Dunn for Batty (65), Denton for Ellis (65), Priestland for Eastmond (69), Homer for Agulla (69).
Not Used: Mercer.
Sin Bin: Denton (72).
Attendance: 22,530.
Referee: JP Doyle (RFU).


An attempt to overturn the rejection of a wind farm has failed - because the appeal was lodged too late.

Dumfries and Galloway Council turned down the five-turbine Blackwood project east of Auldgirth in May this year.
An appeal was lodged by Force 9 Energy Partners and EDF Energy Renewables against that decision.
They argued the council's approach had been "unbalanced" but the Scottish government said the appeal was out of time and could not be considered.
The developers claimedÂ that "limited environmental issues" had been given a "disproportionate weight" in the local authority's assessment of the project.
However, the Scottish government said it had "no scope to accept or consider" their appeal.
It said it had been submitted after a three-month deadline from the original decision had passed.


Alex Hales hit 83 and Joe Root 80 as England reached 310-6 against Sri Lanka on day one of the second Test.

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They added 96 for the third wicket at Chester-le-Street after Alastair Cook (15) fell five short of reaching 10,000 Test runs and under-pressure Nick Compton (9) continued his poor run.
Hales, seeking his first Test hundred, was caught at slip, while Root spooned to cover as Sri Lanka fought back.
But Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali added 70 to give England the upper hand.
Bairstow was caught behind for 48 to give the excellent Nuwan Pradeep his third wicket, but Moeen remains unbeaten on 28.
The hosts won the first Test at Headingley by an innings and 88 runs.
Despite some superb catching from Sri Lanka on a cold day, England will be confident of amassing the sort of first-innings total that will put pressure on the tourists' inexperienced batting line-up.
Hales made 86 at Headingley and picked up where he left off with another sizeable contribution at the top of the order.
After a circumspect start, he accelerated after lunch in partnership with Root, scoring heavily down the ground on the off side.
He looked poised to become the first Englishman to make an international century in all three forms of the game before he swung hard at the part-time left-arm spin of Milinda Siriwardana and was brilliantly caught at slip by Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews.
Nonetheless, Hales is beginning to look like he could be the reliable opening partner for Cook England have been looking for since Andrew Strauss retired in 2012.
For England's other top-order batsmen, it was a tale of familiar flaws as once again the team made a stuttering start to their innings after Cook won the toss.
The skipper was first to fall, in characteristic fashion, fiddling needlessly outside off stump and offering a sharp catch to Dimuth Karunaratne at second slip.
Compton failed to dispel the question marks over his place during another scratchy and underwhelming innings, grinding his way to nine off 34 balls before before top-edging to long leg.
Even Root could reproach himself for a poor shot, offering a simple catch to cover as he attempted to work a short ball from Pradeep to leg.
It was the seventh time in the past eight innings in which Root has passed 50 that he has failed to go on to three figures.
Although England ended the day narrowly on top, this was a fine performance in the field by Sri Lanka.
Their catching was magnificent - as well as Mathews and Karunaratne, Suranga Lakmal produced a brilliant tumbling effort at long leg to dismiss Compton and Lahiru Thirimanne flung himself to his right at cover to end James Vince's innings.
They also performed strongly with the ball, despite missing two of their best pacemen, Dushmantha Chameera and Dhammika Prasad, through injury.
Pradeep and Lakmal bowled a disciplined line and length, Siriwardana chipped in with two wickets, and they conceded only four extras in 90 overs.
England opener Alex Hales on BBC Test Match Special: "I'm pleased with the form I'm in. When you get in you want to make a big score, but I'd have taken it at the start of the day.
"It's was my own fault - I probably try to hit it too hard. Mathews went a little deeper and took a brilliant catch.
"This is a better pitch to bat on than Headingley so I felt a little bit more fluent today. There's still things to work on and I feel like I'm improving every day.
"This has been a learning curve. I'm enjoying being as good as I can in all three formats."
Sri Lanka all-rounder Milinda Siriwardana: "It was a brilliant day for us. It's not easy to get wickets, so we're happy. We fielded really well. We took the half-chances.
"The conditions are better than the first game. It will turn and it's good for the batsmen.
"It was cold this morning. I had the hand-warmers in my pocket. It was the coldest I've played cricket in."
Listen to Jonathan Agnew and Geoffrey Boycott review the day's play on the TMS podcast.
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The father of a teenager who died after surgeons were forced to operate on her by torchlight has said he "no longer has any respect for the NHS".

Emma Welch, 14, died in June 2015 after complications following surgery to correct curvature of the spine.
Two emergency theatres at Bristol Children's Hospital were in use, so she was operated on in a ward in the middle of the night.
Her father Tony said: "Nothing like this should have happened."
He said: "This was a routine operation which went badly wrong.
"I don't for one moment believe that Emma wouldn't have stood a better chance by going into an operating theatre."
Mr Welch was speaking after an inquest cleared the hospital of any blame.
The coroner said the situation in no way led to Emma's death.
In a statement, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust offered its "sincere condolences" to Emma's family.
It said: "The coroner heard that the complication Emma experienced was incredibly rare.
"Whilst any surgery or treatment carries risks, we do our utmost to ensure that we keep the children in our care safe.
"As a hospital we will always review these rare circumstances, to make the treatment and surgery we give as safe as possible."
Four days before her operation, Emma had led the bid to set a record for the largest number of teddies assembled on a mountaintop.
Emma and a team of volunteers climbed Snowdon with 135 soft toys in tow.
The teenager, of Chilcompton, Somerset, had also completed a 1,000-mile (1,609km) bike ride and scaled a height equivalent to Mount Everest on a climbing wall in aid of Brain Tumour Research.


Manchester United assistant manager Ryan Giggs has dismissed reports of a rift with boss Louis van Gaal.

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Rumours of tension between the pair surfaced after Giggs appeared reluctant to fully celebrate Ashley Young's winning goal at Newcastle on Wednesday.
Former team-mate Paul Scholes suggested Giggs "may not have the patience" to remain as number two for the next three years.
But Giggs said the pair have a "great working relationship".
The former Wales captain said: "I'm working as hard as I can and enjoying every minute of it.
"It's coming to that part of the season where the media will look at any little thing just to make it more exciting and more interesting."
Van Gaal said he was "irritated" by suggestions of a rift between himself and Giggs, claiming they have a good relationship.
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Giggs, who took over at Old Trafford for the final four games of last season following David Moyes' dismissal, was named assistant following van Gaal's appointment in May 2014.
Scholes had speculated that he could not see Welshman Giggs being Van Gaal's assistant until the end of his contract in 2017.
He said: "There's no doubt, he had that little taste of it [management] for the last three weeks of last year and he definitely wants to be a manager, you can see that.
"Over the next two or three years, will he have the patience to be a number two for that long? I'm not sure he will."
The 41-year-old Giggs, in Cardiff to promote the 2015 Welsh Community Football Awards, said he was learning from working under the former Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Netherlands boss.
"I've really enjoyed working under him and learning something new every day. I'm learning under a great manager," Giggs added.
"He's won everything and to work under someone like Louis is a great experience for me.
"He's been brilliant with me and given me a lot of responsibility.
"Each day I learn something different and I love working with the players.
"I've been given a great opportunity to be assistant of a club that I've spent my whole career at."


A washing machine and 21 laptops have been stolen from a school in Belfast.

The burglary happened at St Michael's School on the Ravenhill Road.
Police said the primary school was targeted overnight between Wednesday 21 October and Thursday 22 October.
It is thought to be the second time in 18 months that laptops have been stolen from the school.
Det Srg James Johnston said anyone who witnessed the incident or anyone who may be offered similar items for sale should contact detectives in Musgrave on 101.


More than 13,000 private landlords in Wales may be letting properties illegally after the Welsh Government's Rent Smart Wales scheme became law.

The Rent Smart Wales (RSW) rules came into force last week requiring all residential landlords to be trained about their legal obligations.
By the 23 November deadline, 89,130 online accounts had been created with 64,248 licence registrations submitted.
A further 13,208 applications have been started - but not completed.
The Welsh Government wants RSW to help tackle bad landlords who give the private rented sector a bad name.
Communities Secretary Carl Sergeant, the minister responsible for overseeing the scheme, had admitted RSW's system to register landlords had faced delays.
RSW estimated Wales has 208,000 private rented properties and 133,000 -  nearly 65% - had registered by the deadline.
However, not all properties are covered by the new rules. Student housing, commercial and farming lets are all exempt.
RENT SMART FACT FILE:
But those who should have registered could now face a possible fine.
"The fact that Rent Smart Wales has already registered 126,154 properties means they have captured well over half the stock," said an RSW official.
"Our team of enforcement officers will be working in partnership with local authorities across Wales and priority for action will be those landlords/agents who have failed to start the process of complying with the legislation.
"Enforcement powers will now be used in a sensible and proportionate manner."


Half of the world's top 30 women will play in Birmingham at the Aegon Classic this summer, including British number one Johanna Konta.

The pre-Wimbledon tournament announced the strongest field in its 35-year history, led by Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber.
World number 22 Konta, 24, will lead the British challenge, with two wildcards yet to be announced.
The tournament takes place at the Edgbaston Priory Club from 11-19 June.
Top-10 players Simona Halep and Belinda Bencic have also entered along with former world number one Caroline Wozniacki.
They will be joined by two-time grand slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and French Open finalist Lucie Safarova.
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With just three wins from 19 games in the Premier League this season, Swansea City are four points adrift at the bottom of the table.

The Swans have conceded 44 goals this term, a figure matched only by Hull City, who are also struggling in 19th.
After Bob Bradley's sacking by the club following an awful spell of form, Paul Clement has been tasked with stopping the rot at the Liberty Stadium.
But what can Swansea fans expect from the former Derby County manager?
The 44-year-old never played professionally but, while working as a PE teacher in Sutton during the 1990s, Clement studied for his coaching badges and obtained his Uefa 'A' licence.
Clement became a member of Chelsea interim manager Guus Hiddink's backroom staff in 2009 before his association with Italian manager Carlo Ancelotti began.
After his appointment as Chelsea manager in 2009, Ancelotti made Clement one of his assistants and in their first season they helped the club to the Premier League title and FA Cup.
Following a short stint with Steve Kean at Blackburn in 2011, Clement joined up with Ancelotti again at Paris Saint Germain where together they won Ligue 1 in 2012-13
He then rejoined him to Real Madrid in 2013 where they won the Champions League in 2013-14.
Clement was appointed Derby County head coach in June of 2015 on a three-year deal but lasted just eight months in the role before he was sacked.
The Rams were fifth in the Championship at the time of his dismissal in February 2016, but had gone seven league games without a victory.
The club twice broke its transfer record during Clement's time in charge, first signing winger Thomas Ince from Hull for £4.75m before Norwich midfielder Bradley Johnson joined for £6m.
Derby's chairman Mel Morris said at the time of his sacking that under Clement the club had "not made enough progress".
The Swans are halfway through the season and have another 19 Premier League games to play with 57 more points available, but face Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City in their next five league games.
One thing Clement will need to put in place is stability. After Francesco Guidolin's departure in October and Bradley's unimpressive tenure, Clement will need to find his best side and fast.
In his 11 games in charge, Bradley played the same starting XI just twice - in their 1-1 draw with Everton and dramatic 5-4 win against Crystal Palace - with players in key positions coming in and out of the side during his reign.
Former Wales and West Ham defender Danny Gabbidon
"I think it's a happy medium for Swansea. You look at him. A good pedigree as a coach and Swansea is a team that needs coaching. They've been all over the place this season and really disorganised.
"It's going to be very difficult for him to lift these players - the confidence is low at the minute and the one positive is they are not cut adrift at the bottom. A couple of wins and you can get the confidence back into the players and still got the second half of the season to go.
"But he really has got a job on because what I've seen in recent weeks from this Swansea team there's not a lot of confidence in the squad, not a lot of belief in each other and that's the biggest thing he's going to have to do is try and get that confidence back as quickly as possible."


British Bobsleigh has had its funding reduced seven months before the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, after accusations of bullying, racism, sexism and discrimination in the sport.

UK Sport has reduced bobsleigh's allocation by £48,198 to just over £5m.
And the organisation said funding is conditional on cultural improvements within British Bobsleigh.
Elsewhere, funding for ski and snowboard, wheelchair curling and short track speed skating has increased.
Following the third annual investment review for winter sports, UK Sport, the funding agency for Olympic and Paralympic sport, announced an overall increase in funding to eight sports of £283,021 to £32,265,358.
"Bobsleigh will see a minor reduction and the implementation of an agreed culture action plan will be a condition of award," UK Sport said.
Ski and snowboard, wheelchair curling and short track speed skating received increased funding "after demonstrating clear medal potential" for next February's Winter Olympics and March's Winter Paralympics.
Ski and snowboard's increase is £211,567 after Dave Ryding's second-placed finish in the Kitzbuhel slalom earlier this year, Andrew Musgrave's fourth-placed finish at the Nordic World Ski Championship and freestyle skier Izzy Atkin's bronze medal at the World Championships.
Ryding, Musgrave and Akin are now classified as 'Podium' athletes.
Two world titles for Elise Christie has contributed to short track receiving a £67,598 boost.
Wheelchair curling had its funding withdrawn by UK Sport in June 2016 after failing to "demonstrate credible medal potential".
But following a bronze medal at the 2017 World Championships which also secured qualification for Pyeongchang, the sport has been granted an additional £199,342.
Wheelchair Curling performance director Graeme Thompson said: "The team has worked incredibly hard to turn around their fortunes after relegation to re-qualify and also medal at the World Wheelchair Championships this season, to guarantee ParalympicsGB a place at the Paralympic Games in 2018. Today's announcement is recognition of that achievement."
Figure skating's funding has been cut by £147,288 "to reflect their financial need". There will be no changes for curling, skeleton or para-alpine ski and snowboard.
The total financial award across the winter disciplines has increased by £283,021 to £32,265,358.
UK Sport director of performance Chelsea Warr said: "Winter sports have had a strong 2016-17 season and their performances mean we remain on track for another record-breaking Games in Pyeongchang.
"Through the annual investment review process, we have identified ways to protect and enhance medal potential at Pyeongchang 2018 and adjusted our investment accordingly so that we can be confident of more medals and medallists in South Korea to inspire the nation."
British Bobsleigh declined to comment when approached by BBC Sport.


The Curiosity rover's failure to detect methane on Mars is a blow to theories that the planet may still host some types of life, say mission scientists.

Telescopes and satellites have reported seeing small but significant volumes of the gas, but the six-wheeled robot can pick up no such trace.
On Earth, 95% of atmospheric methane is produced by microbial organisms.
Researchers have hung on to the hope that the molecule's signature at Mars might also indicate a life presence.
The inability of Curiosity's sophisticated instrumentation to make this detection is likely now to dent this optimism.
"Based on previous measurements, we were expecting to go there and find 10 parts per billion (ppbv) or more, and we were excited about finding it. So when you go to search for something and you don't find it, there's a sense of disappointment," said Dr Chris Webster, the principal investigator on Curiosity's Tuneable Laser Spectrometer (TLS).
The Nasa rover's search is reported online in a paper published by Science Magazine.
Curiosity has been sucking in Martian air and scanning its components since shortly after landing in August 2012.
From these tests, it has not been possible to discern any methane to within the present limits of the TLS's sensitivity.
This means that if the gas is there, it can constitute no more than 1.3ppbv of the atmosphere - equivalent to just over 10,000 tonnes of the gas.
This upper limit is about six times lower than the previous estimates of what should be present, based on the satellite and telescope observations.
The number of 1.3ppbv is very low, and will put a question mark against the robustness of those earlier measurements.
The fact that Curiosity is working at ground level and in one location should not matter, as the Martian atmosphere is known to mix well over the course of half a year.
Methane at Mars could have a number of possible sources, of course - not just microbial activity.
It could be delivered by comets or asteroids, or produced internally by geological processes.
But it is the link to life that has most intrigued planetary scientists.
Earth's atmosphere contains billions of tonnes of methane, the vast majority of it coming from microbes, such as the organisms found in the digestive tracts of animals.
The speculation has been that some methane-producing bugs, or methanogens, could perhaps exist on Mars if they lived underground, away from the planet's harsh surface conditions.
This theory was bolstered by the previous observations making their detections in spring-time. It was suggested that the seasonal rise in temperatures was melting surface ices and allowing trapped methane to rise into the atmosphere in plumes.
But in Dr Webster's view, Curiosity's inability to detect appreciable amounts of methane now makes this scenario much less likely.
"This observation doesn't rule out the possibility of current microbial activity, [but] it lowers the probability certainly that methanogens are the source of that activity," he told the BBC's Science In Action Programme.
Or as team-member Prof Sushil Atreya, from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, put it: "There could still be other types of microbes on Mars. This just makes it harder for there to be microbes that kick out methane."
Dr Geronimo Villanueva is affiliated to the Catholic University of America and is based at Nasa's Goddard Space Flight Center.
He studies the Martian atmosphere using telescopes here on Earth.  He cautioned that additional, much more precise measurements were needed from the rover before firm conclusions could be drawn.
"This is an evolving story as we get more numbers," he told BBC News.
"If Curiosity's statistics hold, it's important because it sets a new bound. Methane should last a long time in the atmosphere and the fact that the rover doesn't see it puts a big constraint on possible releases. But I would like to see more and better Curiosity results, and more orbiter results as well."
Dr Olivier Witasse is the project scientist on the European Space Agency's (Esa) Mars Express satellite, which made the very first claimed methane detection back in 2003.
He also said much more data was required.
"There is some indication from the Mars Express data - and it has not been published yet because it's a very complicated measurement - that the methane might peak at a certain altitude, at 25-40km. The Curiosity results are interesting but they have not yet settled the issue."
Esa has its ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter launching in 2016, which will be able to make further methane searches. And the Indian space agency (Isro) is due to despatch its Mangalyaan probe to the Red Planet later this year.  This, too, has methane detection high on its list of objectives.
Curiosity itself will work to improve its readings, and will shortly deploy an "enrichment" process that will amplify any methane signal that might be present.
"We can lower that upper limit down to tens of parts per trillion, maybe 50 parts per trillion," said Dr Webster.
Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos


A Glasgow man who bet £30,000 on the Conservatives winning a majority in the general election has pocketed £210,000.

The pensioner made the bet at a city branch of Ladbrokes 10 days before the vote, at odds of seven to one.
Alex Donohue of Ladbrokes said the "well-groomed gentleman" was "the biggest winner of the general election".
He said many punters had backed a hung parliament, and lost out when the Conservatives won a slim majority.


Leaders of the prison officers union have reached a deal over pay and conditions following concerns about jail safety, the Ministry of Justice has said.

The package on offer from the government includes a pay rise and a reduction in the retirement age.
The deal will now be put to a ballot of the union's membership.
Up to 10,000 prison officers in England and Wales protested last month over claims of a "surge" in jail violence.
They stopped work over claims of a "surge in violence" in jails but returned to work after a High Court injunction ordered them to end their 24-hour protest.
Under the agreement, prison officers will be allowed to retire at 65 - up to three years ahead of the current state pension age - at no cost to them and with full pension benefits.
Uniformed staff will also be given consolidated pay rises of between 0.5% and 1% for each of the next three years, on top of usual performance-related pay increases.
They also stand to receive a "recognition and retention" package totalling Â£1,000.
Prisons minister Sam Gyimah, said the government and POA had also "agreed a significant number of health and safety reforms as well as new powers for governors in terms of how they deploy their staff in prisons".
The POA directed members to take action last month after talks with the government over health and safety concerns broke down.
It came after multiple high-profile incidents at prisons across England.
In October, Jamal Mahmoud, an inmate at HMP Pentonville, died after being stabbed to death in an attack at the prison, which left two others injured.
And last month prisoners caused almost Â£1m of damage during a riot at Bedford prison.
Days later at HMP Isle of Wight, an inmate cut a prison officer's throat with a razor blade on the way back to his cell.
In an effort to tackle safety issues Justice Secretary Liz Truss unveiled proposals detailing Â£1.3bn investment in new prisons over the next five years, including plans for 2,100 extra prison officers, drug tests for inmates on entry and exit from prisons, and more autonomy for governors.
In response to the new pay deal she said: "This agreement is a good offer which rightly recognises the hard work and dedication of officers across the country doing a tough job."


Yeovil have finalised the signing of ex-Swansea midfielder Kyle Copp after receiving international clearance.

Copp had previously agreed non-contract terms with the League Two club and could feature at Doncaster on Saturday.
The 19-year-old played for Wales at Under-17 level, but did not make a first-team appearance for Swansea.
Meanwhile, Yeovil have extended the loans of Swansea defender Liam Shepherd and forward Ryan Hedges, both 21, for the rest of the season.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


One Sunday in mid-June, my colleagues and I spent three hours trying to get out of a rally held in Istanbul by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Our car got stuck behind dozens of buses organised by Mr Erdogan's supporters.
They had been able to call in tens of thousands of demonstrators from across the country - and drive them to and from the rally.
At this point, it became clear that the prime minister would defeat protesters who had taken over Istanbul's Gezi Park.
The protesters were angry. But the prime minister was organised. In Turkey, organisation wins.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan now finds himself facing an opponent who is just as organised as he is: Fethullah Gulen.
The struggle between the two men poses a threat to Mr Erdogan's undeclared ambition to run for the presidency in 2014.
Fethullah Gulen is an Islamic scholar who founded an influential social and cultural network which now includes more than 900 schools in Turkey.
Profile: Fethullah Gulen's Hizmet movement
Mr Gulen himself has lived in self-imposed exile in the US since 1999. His followers hold senior positions in the Turkish police and judiciary.
For years, the Gulenist movement worked alongside Recep Tayyip Erdogan's alliance of the working class and religious and business communities.
This broad alliance won Mr Erdogan three general elections.
The Gulen movement's loyalists formed their own informal faction within the ruling AK Party.
In recent years, the Gulenists helped the prime minister to reduce the power of the armed forces.
But, during the Gezi Park protests in June, differences between Mr Erdogan and the Gulenist movement began to emerge.
Mr Gulen's supporters accused the prime minister of governing in an authoritarian manner - a charge Mr Erdogan dismissed.
Then, in November, the government announced plans to get rid of private schools which help students to prepare for university exams, including those run by Mr Gulen's movement.
This began the period of open conflict between allies of the prime minister and those loyal to Fethullah Gulen.
On 17 December, the police carried out dawn raids against leading businessmen and allies of the prime minister.
Many here believe that these raids were orchestrated by Gulenists in the police and the judiciary.
In June 2013, Recep Tayyip Erdogan survived the challenge posed by opposition demonstrators.
But this time the challenge comes from a much more organised opponent - whose ultimate goal remains unclear.


A housing developer which was refused permission to build 366 homes in Bangor because of fears over the effect on the Welsh language is appealing.

Gwynedd councillors also rejected the planning application by Morbaine because of concern about the impact on local traffic and schools.
The developer wants to build the houses at Pen y Ffridd in Penrhosgarnedd.
The planning inspectorate will consider the appeal before making a recommendation to the Welsh Government.
The application for the houses was the biggest considered by Gwynedd council and was refused using new planning rules designed to protect the Welsh language.
Residents had organised a petition against building at the 35.36 acre (14.3 ha) site raising concerns about overdevelopment and lack of infrastructure.


Japan have carried out a test exercise, using a drone to deliver food to elderly people living in rural areas.

25 February 2016 Last updated at 12:41 GMT
The drone carried a box of bread and milk and reached its destination 500 metres away in about four minutes.
In another test flight, the drone successfully delivered boiled eggs without any of the shells cracking.
The drone flew 30 metres away from people, to ensure it wasn't breaking air safety rules in Japan.
Japan hopes to put the service into use by 2018. It's hope it will help people living in unpopulated, rural areas.
Before launching the service, more studies are planned to see how the drones will work in bad weather and to address any safety concerns of residents.


Bristol City head coach Lee Johnson says their loss at Sheffield Wednesday showed him which of his players "can't quite handle the pressure."

City led 2-0 at half-time but lost 3-2 after Kieran Lee's 96th-minute winner.
Both teams had a player sent off, with Gary O'Neil dismissed seconds after Lee Tomlin's penalty bounced clear off the post when Johnson's side were 2-1 up.
"There was a turning point in the game. You couldn't make it up, it's like a bad dream," he told BBC Radio Bristol.
"What we have showed is that we can go to a real intense environment and really silence everyone, especially for 45 minutes.
"Whether you win or lose, you always learn from it. It's taught me, I know who can't quite handle the pressure and that's interesting."
City have 10 points after their first seven Championship games of 2016-17, having won their first two matches.


A further 333 jobs have been saved at steel firm Caparo, administrators say.

Caparo Tubular Solutions has been sold to the Gupta family, which manages metals group Liberty House, PwC said.
The sale, described as a "sliver of good news" by a union boss, secures hundreds of jobs in the West Midlands and Blaenau Gwent.
In October, Caparo announced 452 jobs were to go across the country, including 300 in the West Midlands, after it entered administration.
A total of 76 jobs in the West Midlands and south of England were saved last week when PwC confirmed Caparo Testing Technologies had been sold.
It brings the total number of jobs saved at the company to 409.
PwC said clarifying the number of posts secured in each location was difficult because some staff work across more than one site.
The latest sale includes the businesses of Caparo Precision Tubes, Caparo Tube Components and Caparo Accles and Pollock, all based in Oldbury, West Midlands.
Also saved are steel distributor Hub Le Bas in Bilston, West Midlands and the Caparo Tubes Tredegar Asset in Tredegar, Blaenau Gwent.
Sanjeev Gupta, chief executive of Liberty House, described the Caparo tube businesses as "a major complement" to the company's own hot rolled coil production, based in Newport, south-east Wales.
He said: "I believe that, despite the current difficulties being encountered by the UK steel industry there is a future for the sector in Britain.
"Caparo Tubular Solutions was a fundamentally profitable business with substantial, sustainable value, and we were very attracted to its highly-skilled management and workforce, extensive distribution network and top-quality customer base."
Robert Moran, partner at PwC, said: "The sale of Caparo Tubular Solutions is a major boost for the midlands economy, the employees of Caparo and more widely for the UK steel industry.
"This deal preserves all 333 jobs at Caparo Tubular Solutions, which manufactures, distributes and supplies advanced tube components and parts for the automotive and aerospace industries in the West Midlands and south Wales."
Unions have blamed cheap imports from China for the UK steel industry's problems.
Russell Farrington, GMB regional organiser, said: "This is a sliver of good news for workers in the steel industry.
"GMB warmly welcome this for the Caparo workers we represent in the West Midlands. We have made progress on the energy prices front for the UK steel industry.
"We now need action on dumping."


Zhao Shuai won China's 19th gold medal of the Rio Games by taking the men's -58kg Olympic taekwondo title on Wednesday.

The 21-year-old beat Thailand's Tawin Hanprab 6-4 in the final.
Luisito Pie of the Dominican Republic and South Korea's Kim Tae-hun won the bronze medals.
Kim So-hui won gold in the women's -49kg final. The South Korean defeated Tijana Bogdanovic of Serbia 7-6 in a thrilling contest.
Patimat Abakarova of Azerbaijan and Thailand's Panipak Wongpattanakit took the bronze medals.


Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has said she would be "above the president" if her National League for Democracy wins Sunday's election.

The NLD is widely expected to do well in the election, but Ms Suu Kyi is banned from taking the role of president by the constitution.
The BBC's Jonah Fisher in Yangon says her comment was her strongest assertion yet that she intends to govern anyway.
The elections will be Myanmar's first openly contested polls in 25 years.
More than 90 parties are standing in the first national elections since a nominally civilian government took power in the country, also known as Burma, in 2011.
On the campaign trail: the BBC's Jonathan Head in the town of Hinthada
Ms Suu Kyi told the news conference in Yangon (Rangoon), her last before polls open: "If we win and the NLD forms a government I will be above the president. It's a very simple message."
She said there was nothing in the constitution which prevented this.
Clause 58 in Myanmar's constitution, however, states that the president "takes precedence over all other persons" in the country.
Ms Suu Kyi cannot be president herself as the constitution bars candidates with foreign spouses or children. Her two sons hold British passports.
The 2008 constitution sets out a complex process whereby parliament chooses Myanmar's president - the upper house, lower house and unelected army representatives each put forward candidates.
Whoever wins most votes in a joint session of the three groups becomes president, with the two losers vice-presidents.
Who Ms Suu Kyi might choose as the NLD candidate for president remains unclear.
This is a bold statement from Aung San Suu Kyi.
She's trying to reassure her supporters that voting for the National League for Democracy is the same as a vote for her.  Vote NLD  - get Suu Kyi.
But further down the line it could turn out to be a blunder.
The idea that someone could be "above" the president goes against both the letter and spirit of the 2008 Burmese constitution.
Clause 58 is pretty clear. "The presidentâ€¦ takes precedence over all other persons throughout the Republic of the Union of Myanmar."
So there are clear constitutional issues if Suu Kyi thinks she's "above" the president and is going to give them orders.
For now it may not seem important. But if the NLD do win a landslide on Sunday some may start looking for reasons to legally challenge the result.
Ms Suu Kyi criticised the electoral process so far, saying it had been less than totally free and fair and that the electoral commission had failed to deal with irregularities.
She also briefly touched on the Rohingya, the persecuted mostly Muslim minority who Myanmar says are not citizens and who do not have a vote.
Ms Suu Kyi has been criticised for not speaking out on the issue, but in her news conference she said the situation should not be exaggerated.
The constitution of Myanmar grants the military at least 25% of parliamentary seats.
The NLD and any allies will need to win at least two-thirds of the remaining seats in order to choose the next president.


US security staff shot a knife-wielding man three times at New Orleans international airport after he tried to storm a checkpoint, officials say.

They say the man, named as Richard White, 62, attacked an airport security worker with wasp spray before striking another on the arm with a large knife.
Police said he was "unresponsive" after being shot in the leg, chest and face but was taken to a local hospital.
Several bystanders were said to have been treated for minor injuries.
Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand told reporters it was unclear whether White was at the airport as a traveller. "We're still piecing together witness interviews," he said.
He said White, a taxi driver, had "little or no criminal history". He was alive and in surgery, Sheriff Normand added.
Those making their way to and from flights in the busy terminal reported chaotic scenes as the incident unfolded.
Jeremy Didier, who had just arrived on a flight from Florida, said he saw a man "jumping over people" in the queue at the boarding pass checkpoint.
Two gunshots rang out and "everyone hit the floor," he told The Times-Picayune, a New Orleans newspaper.
Farah Stockman, a journalist for the Boston Globe who was in the airport at the time, tweeted: "Just witnessed [the] craziest thing."
"People had heard gunshots. Everyone was hiding behind chairs and in doorways. Make our way to exit. Body was lying in a pool of blood."
Authorities said the area where the attack took place would be closed off until Saturday but confirmed that rest of the airport remained open.


A spy novel written nearly 40 years ago about Russia attempting to get one of its own into the White House has risen to the top of the download charts in its genre.

21 January 2017 Last updated at 11:03 GMT
Former British spy and author Ted Allbeury, from Tunbridge Wells in Kent, wrote The Twentieth Day of January during heightened cold war tensions in 1980.
The 37-year-old novel has attracted a fresh wave of attention as its plot reflects current concerns about US politics today.
Donald Trump was sworn in as US President on Friday after a controversial campaign which included claims Russian spies were involved in hacking during the election campaign.


Glyndwr University expects to double its undergraduate student numbers to 5,400 in five years.

A plan to improve the Wrexham university was unveiled by the vice-chancellor, Prof Graham Upton.
He said the university hoped to generate a turnover of up to £75m in the same period.
Last year the university was stopped from recruiting overseas students after an investigation into alleged visa fraud. The ban has since been lifted.
The university said on Thursday it expected to turn a £4m deficit into a £1.7m surplus next year.


A customisable smartwatch with removable sensors has smashed through its crowdfunding target.

19 November 2015 Last updated at 01:07 GMT
The Blocks project had hoped to raise $250,000 (Â£164,000) but backers pledged six times that amount.
The creators say the modular design, which lets wearers choose which sensors they want on their wrist, makes the device future-proof and upgradeable.
Co-founders Serge Didenko and Ali Tahmaseb showed a prototype to BBC technology reporter Chris Foxx.


Two Iraqi journalists have been killed by Islamic State (IS) in the past four days, Reporters Without Borders says.

Mohanad al-Akidi, the correspondent for the Sada news agency in the IS-held northern Iraqi city of Mosul, was shot dead at the Ghazlani base on Monday.
Mr Akidi was abducted in July while he travelled to Dohuk province.
On Friday Raad Mohamed al-Azzawi, a cameraman for Sama Salah Aldeen TV, was beheaded by IS militants in the city of Samarra. He had been held for a month.
Reporters Without Borders, which promotes and defends world media freedom, said it was "horrified by the jihadist group's constant crimes of violence".
"Islamic State is pursuing a policy of indiscriminate criminal violence that shows no pity towards journalists and does not hesitate to kidnap, torture and murder them," said its programme director, Lucie Morillon.
"Media personnel need the support and protection of the local authorities more than ever," she added.
The vast majority of foreign journalists have fled the large parts of Iraq and Syria controlled by IS because of the danger, leaving local reporters to document events.
IS has beheaded the American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff in the past two months, and is holding the British journalist John Cantlie, who has appeared in a series of propaganda videos.
Earlier this month, IS issued guidelines for journalists operating in the Syrian province of Deir al-Zour.
They were told to swear allegiance as "subjects of the Islamic State", submit stories for approval, and inform the group of any social media accounts. Anyone violating the guidelines will be "held accountable".
Reporters Without Borders said Mr Azzawi had been threatened with death by IS in September because he refused to work for the group.


Five people have been taken to hospital after becoming unwell at a sheltered housing unit in West Dunbartonshire.

Emergency services were called to an address in Heather Avenue, Alexandria, at about 14:25 on Saturday.
The Scottish ambulance service said four ambulances, a paramedic unit and a special operations response team attended.
Police Scotland said the circumstances were being investigated.
It is understood that no violence was involved in the incident.
Five people were taken to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow and the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley. Their condition was not immediately known.
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: "Enquiries are at an early stage to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident."


A heatwave in Egypt has killed at least 61 people in three days, the health ministry says, as temperatures soared to 47C (116F).

Forty died after suffering heatstroke on Sunday and Monday, and another 21 died on Tuesday, state media reported.
Another 581 people have been admitted to hospital with heat exhaustion.
Most of the victims were elderly, but local media reports said that they also included several detainees and patients at a psychiatric hospital.
Egyptian detention facilities are notoriously overcrowded, while one newspaper said the deaths at the psychiatric hospital were the result of "negligence".
The electricity ministry also blamed the weather for a widespread power outage for several hours on Tuesday in several districts of Cairo, bringing the capital's metro system to a halt.
The Middle East has been hit by a heatwave since late July, with a high atmospheric pressure ridge hovering above much of the region.


Jeremy Corbyn says he is "very confident" there is support in Wales for his bid to retain the Labour leadership.

Mr Corbyn, who is being challenged by Pontypridd MP Owen Smith, visited Merthyr Tydfil and will go to Swansea on Friday.
They took part in the first hustings of the leadership contest in Cardiff on Thursday night.
Mr Corbyn said no community in Wales would be "left behind".
He spoke to hundreds of supporters at a rally in Merthyr Tydfil's Penderyn Square, the scene of the start of the 1831 Merthyr Rising.
"We're reaching out to every community in every part of this country," he told the crowd.
"Yes, in order to take part in this election, yes, in order to strengthen our party, but also to reach out to those who have become disillusioned with politics because they don't see a political solution to their problems", Mr Corbyn said.
As the Labour leader left the event he was followed by a large group of supporters, some of whom asked for "selfies" or tried to speak to the leader.
Ahead of the visit, Mr Corbyn told BBC Wales he was "very confident" in the support for his leadership in the south Wales valleys.
"We had the event last night in Cardiff. We've got the event today in Merthyr and were going on to Swansea this evening. We're doing a lot of campaigning all over the UK.
"No-one and no community will ever be left behind by Labour," he said.
The Labour leader Mr Corbyn claimed Labour had gained seats at the last assembly election, despite the party's overall number of Senedd seats having fallen from 30 to 29.
"The assembly election results, we gained some seats as well as losing one," he said. "We've made a lot of progress there."
In fact, Labour won no extra seats at the May poll, and lost Rhondda to Plaid Cymru.
Meanwhile, Mr Smith has won his first trade union endorsements from Community and the Musicians' Union.
Mr Corbyn is being supported by Aslef, Communication Workers Union, the Fire Brigades Union and the Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians.
During Thursday's hustings, Mr Corbyn vowed to fight to keep Port Talbot Steelworks open and also to invest in transport projects.
Mr Smith said he would invest an extra Â£1bn a year in resource funding, saying the Welsh Government could increase spending on the NHS by 4% every year in the next parliament.
Party members, affiliated trade union supporters and so-called registered supporters are able to vote in the election.
The result of the poll will be announced on 24 September.
One of Mr Corbyn's Merthyr Tydfil-based supporters is Margaret Davies, mayor of the county council and Labour councillor for Cyfarthfa ward.
Speaking in a personal capacity she said Jeremy Corbyn "has spent his life by" his policies. "I trust Mr Corbyn to implement those policies," she said.
Brendan Toomey, Merthyr Tydfil Labour council leader, is backing Owen Smith. He said he was supporting the challenger "because he's got a coherent plan for government".
On Thursday, Mr Smith told BBC Radio Wales he feared the Labour Party could not close the gap on the Conservatives.
"Most people in the country don't think the Labour Party is going places, most people think Labour has lost credibility in recent years and lost further credibility in recent months," he said.
On the same day Mr Corbyn set out 10 pledges "to rebuild and transform Britain", promising to invest Â£500 billion in infrastructure, manufacturing and industry.
"For too long, too many communities in Britain have been neglected, too many people's potential has been left untapped and their talents undeveloped," he said.


Green Party MP Caroline Lucas is to call for a "progressive alliance" with the SNP as her party holds what it says is its largest ever meeting.

At a spring conference in Liverpool, Ms Lucas will say the two parties could "forge a new grouping in Parliament".
The Greens are polling in similar numbers to the Lib Dems and say their membership quadrupled in the past year.
But the party's leader Natalie Bennett has faced criticism of her performance in recent weeks.
She struggled in a radio interview to explain how a flagship policy to build 500,000 new social rented homes would be funded, later attributing her performance to an "excruciating mind blank".
The leader of the Green Party on Liverpool council, John Coyne, said he had been "taken aback" by her "excruciating" performance and she had clearly been "underprepared".
He told the BBC that it wouldn't happen again as Ms Bennett - who could take part in a TV debate with other party leaders should they go ahead - would in future rehearse her performance in mock interviews.
"It's a failure that she was underprepared we know why that happened and we know it will be fixed for the future," Mr Coyne - a former Liberal Democrat who is now chair of the Green Councillors Association - said.
Main pledges
"It was a serious failure and we thought it might be damaging to us but one thing that perhaps is saving us from that is people who are attracted to the Green Party tend to have a more generous disposition anyway tend to be able to forgive a mistake."
In her conference speech, Ms Bennett will say her party offers a "message of hope and real change" and would create "a political system that puts the public first".
The Green Party in England and Wales is fielding its largest ever slate of candidates, aiming to stand in 90% of parliamentary seats on 7 May. The Green parties in Scotland and Northern Ireland are separate organisations.
In her address, former leader Ms Lucas will say the Green Party should join forces with the SNP in the next Parliament to maximise their influence on the next government.
"With the rise of the SNP, and with our own Green surge, we have the chance to forge a new grouping in Parliament. A progressive alliance.
"Of course, in Scotland and in Wales we'll be fighting hard for our distinctive values and policies. Just as we do against those individual Labour and even Lib Dem candidates with whom we have something in common.
"That's the nature of British politics under the first past the post system."
What are the top issues for each political party at the 2015 general election?
The SNP is riding high in the polls, threatening even the safest Labour seat in Scotland, according to recent opinion polls published by Tory peer Lord Ashcroft .


BBC Radio Derby has launched the Colin Bloomfield Melanoma Appeal to help protect children from skin cancer.

The appeal has been prompted by Colin's diagnosis with stage four melanoma in 2013.
The presenter's openness and optimism as he battles the disease has touched thousands of listeners.
He said the appeal could make a difference in helping fight back against the disease.
The BBC is working with the Derby Telegraph and charity Skcin, which specialises in skin cancer prevention.
The appeal has been set up to help educate children in Derbyshire and East Staffordshire about how to stay safe in the sun.
Colin has worked at BBC Radio Derby for more than 10 years.
In that time he has been a news reporter, Derby County commentator, and presented hundreds of programmes, most recently the breakfast show.
In 2001, a dermatologist confirmed Colin had skin cancer.
"I was terrified," he said. "At that age, you're invincible. Or so you think."
The cancer was cut out at a hospital in Birmingham, regular check-ups followed and was effectively discharged after five years without any reoccurrence.
He said: "Life was good, I was cancer free, healthy and happy."
However, one morning he woke up to discover a lump under his groin and it has since spread to his brain.
He was told in November he only had months to live.
"I haven't given up hope of a 'miracle' cure. The longer this disease can be kept stable, the more chance I have.
"New groundbreaking treatments are being introduced giving fresh hope to patients and their families.
"There's still so much work to be done and this appeal could make a real difference in helping fight back against this brutal disease."


Parents have been told to stop smoking and swearing outside a school - after pupils raised the issue as a problem.

Gill Pasola, head of school at Eythorne Elvington Community Primary School in Dover, asked parents to improve their behaviour at the gates in a newsletter.
She said the issue had been raised by the schools council which is made up of elected representatives from each year.
The adults were told to smoke well away from the school and mind their language in the vicinity.
On BBC South East Today's Facebook page, Chantelle Amini wrote: "Good! All schools should implement this! Nothing worse than having to walk through a cloud of smoke with your child!"
Mari Ellen Edwards said: "Good on the children for telling on the parents!"
Gary Gardiner posted: "Sounds like they need to go back to school!!"
Chris McGovern, a former head teacher and chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, said: "Normally we have bad news stories about schools going into special measures, but here we have a good news story about pupils putting some of their own parents into special measures."
He said the primary pupils had been rated outstanding by Ofsted for their behaviour.
"They actually in this particular case are going to teach their parents a little bit about how to behave, I suspect," he added.
He said their parents should be proud of them.
Waiting outside the school gates this afternoon, it was clear not all parents had got the message - or if they had they weren't choosing to do as they're told.
Children finishing school for the day explained their decision and said smoking could kill children and cause asthma - while swearing set a bad example to youngsters.
The head teacher declined to comment.
In the school's last Ofsted report, inspectors said the pupils concentrated well, tried their hardest to do their best, listened carefully, showed confidence and were polite and courteous towards one another and to adults and visitors.
"They greet everyone with bright smiles and hold open doors. Consequently, the atmosphere in the school is happy and harmonious," inspectors wrote.


Zoo bosses say a decision not to put down a rare male Malayan tiger that killed its keeper was supported by the victim's parents.

Rosa King, 33, died at Hamerton Zoo Park in Cambridgeshire on 29 May when she and the tiger, which the zoo said was called Cicip, entered an enclosure.
The zoo, which has been shut since the attack, is due to reopen on Friday.
It comes after it passed a licence and public safety inspection by Huntingdonshire Council.
The park's director Andrew Swales said the decision to reopen had been taken "in consultation with the police, our staff and Rosa's family".
He added: "While this remains a very difficult time for all concerned, there has been tremendous support for this."
He described Ms King as the "life and soul of Hamerton Zoo Park".
"She loved working with animals, particularly the big cats, and was an inspiration to those of us lucky enough to work with her as well as the many visitors who benefited from her knowledge and passion for wildlife."
He said he could not comment further while a joint health and safety investigation led by the council and Cambridgeshire Police was ongoing.
An inquest into Ms King's death was opened and adjourned at Cambridgeshire Coroner's Court in Huntingdon last week.
Senior coroner David Heming said Ms King died of "traumatic injuries".
Following her death, Ms King's family said she "lived and breathed a vocation that meant the world to her".
A funeral service was held for her at St Andrew's Church in Chippenham on Wednesday.


The Catholic Archbishop of Durban, Wilfrid Fox Napier, has described paedophilia as a psychological "illness, not a criminal condition".

The South African cardinal told the BBC that people who were themselves abused as children and then abused others needed to be examined by doctors.
He was one of 115 cardinals who took part in the conclave at the Vatican to elect Pope Francis earlier this week.
The Church has recently been dogged by scandals over clerical sex abuse.
In an interview with the Stephen Nolan programme on BBC Radio 5 live, Cardinal Napier referred to paedophilia as "a psychological condition, a disorder".
"What do you do with disorders? You've got to try and put them right.
"If I - as a normal being - choose to break the law, knowing that I'm breaking the law, then I think I need to be punished."
He said he knew at least two priests, who became paedophiles after themselves being abused as children.
"Now don't tell me that those people are criminally responsible like somebody who chooses to do something like that. I don't think you can really take the position and say that person deserves to be punished. He was himself damaged."
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier's comments triggered immediate criticism.
Barbara Dorries, who as a child was abused by a priest, works for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, which is based in Chicago. She told the BBC: "If it is a disease that's fine, but it's also a crime and crimes are punished, criminals are held accountable for what they did and what they do.
"The bishops and the cardinals have gone to great lengths to cover these crimes to enable the predators to move on, to not be arrested, to keep the secrets within the church."
Michael Walsh, who has written a biography of late Pope John Paul II, said Cardinal Napier's remarks were similar to the position once taken by the Catholic Church in the UK and the US.
"They did actually at one time believe it was a condition that could be dealt with. Many bishops were simply moving priests and trying to disguise the fact that they'd been committing these crimes," Mr Walsh told the BBC.
Marie Collins, who is a victim of abuse, told the BBC:  "I think it is appalling that we have a cardinal, a man at this level in the church that can still hold these views. He is totally ignoring the child."
Update 21 March: In a statement on Sunday 17 March, Cardinal Napier apologised to victims of child abuse offended by his BBC interview. He told the BBC that he fully upheld the Church's position that the sexual abuse of children was a crime that should be dealt with "according to the requirements of civil criminal law and canon law".


Cardiff Devils are still the best team in ice hockey's Elite League, says netminder Ben Bowns.

The Welsh side lost their Challenge Cup crown after a 1-0 overtime loss to Nottingham Panthers in Sunday's final.
The Devils have also been leapfrogged by Sheffield Steelers at the top of the Elite League after three consecutive defeats, but Bowns remains confident of silverware.
"We are the best team in the league, so why not?," he said.
"If we play like we can, stick to these systems [then] we are going to do it.
"There is not one player in this league that I would swap for anyone in our dressing room," added Bowns, who turned away an impressive 47 of the 48 shots he faced on Sunday.
Andrew Lord's side can still win three trophies this season - the Devils are second in the Elite League and have a game in hand on the Steelers, who are two points ahead with four games to play before the play-offs begin.
The Welsh side, who have five games left, are also top of the Erhardt Conference.
Despite Evan Mosey's late winner for Nottingham at the Sheffield Arena, which came just two days after the Panthers had beaten the Devils 6-1 in the league, Bowns is backing his side to return to their best.
"The commitment is there, the effort levels are there," Bowns told BBC Wales Sport.
"Maybe we need to be a little more clinical in the defensive zone and offensive zone, but that is about it.
"If everyone just does what they can, then we are not going to have a problem."
Devils player-coach Lord says he was "very proud" of his side's performance, but admits they struggled in overtime, as the Panthers looked fresher with the teams playing four-on-four during sudden-death.
"[I] should have had the boys better prepared for the four-on-four, we are not used to that format. They kind of just hemmed us in.
"For whatever reason, we have lost our legs a little bit the last 10 days, two weeks.
"Maybe I need to look at our training a little bit, evaluate that, because we need to get our legs back."


Six police officers have been injured in two separate "ramming attacks" in south Armagh at the weekend.

At 03:30 GMT in Crossmaglen on Sunday, a police vehicle was rammed by a van and two officers were hurt.
At 05:00 GMT, police officers in two other vehicles who had been called to investigate the first incident, were rammed by a car at Dundalk Road.
Four officers were injured in that attack.
PSNI Sergeant Sam Hoey said: "We now have six officers, who were out working to keep the people of south Armagh safe, off work with their injuries and three police vehicles off the road."
Police have appealed for information.


Bath forward Matt Garvey is to have surgery after sustaining a neck injury.

The former London Irish man, 29, who can play in the second or back row, was injured in Friday's loss at Newcastle.
"He really hurt his neck and he has got pins and needles in his arms and through his hands," director of rugby Todd Blackadder told BBC Points West.
"So he could be out for a little while yet but it's hopefully not too serious. But to lose a big boy like that is an opportunity for someone else."


The issue of grammar schools remains a hardy perennial in the education debate and an increasing focus for parties in the run-up to the general election.

It is one which is very much alive in Kent, where 20% of pupils still go to grammar schools.
The growing population and rising demand for places has led many Kent grammar schools to expand.
This reflects the national picture. Although the number of grammar schools has remained stable for decades, the number of pupils has risen.
Kent County Council, one of the largest local authorities in England, says there is no more room for popular grammars in Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells to expand.
That's why the council has been supporting the creation of an annexe of Weald of Kent girls' school in Sevenoaks - a town that has no grammar school of its own. It is a controversial step.
In an alternative approach, the town's Knole Academy has created its own "grammar stream". According to head teacher Mary Boyle, this is not just a "top set", but grammar school teaching.
She has promised parents and pupils they will study academic subjects "with rigour" and "in depth". Her grammar stream pupils are aiming at the best universities, including Oxford and Cambridge.
In recent years, grammar schools have increased their reach.
In 1985 there were 175 grammar schools across England, educating 3.2% of the population.
By last year there were 163, but they educated 5.1% of secondary school pupils.
According to opinion polls, support for grammar schools remains constant.
A recent YouGov survey, published in The Times, indicated that 54% of people said they would support a new grammar in response to "demonstrated local demand". If elected, UKIP has promised a grammar school in every town.
The former education secretary Michael Gove did not support the creation of new grammars - instead he focused on improving non-selective schools. In the past, Prime Minister David Cameron has not supported grammars either - seeing them as divisive.
However, he said recently that all good schools - including grammars - should be able to expand. The current Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has yet to make a decision.
Parents in Sevenoaks have been campaigning for many years for new grammar provision in their town.
Sarah Randall, a teacher living in Sevenoaks, has two older children who go to school in Tonbridge every day.
Her daughter, aged 12, travels by bus. That can take 80 minutes each way. Her son, aged 13, takes the train. The journey takes less time - between 40 minutes and an hour - but it costs Â£500 a year.
The children have a lot of homework, and the travel means they have little time for extra-curricular activities during the week.
Their schools take pupils from many miles away - one of her daughter's friends has a journey of two hours each way.
It can be hard for them to see each other, even at weekends. However, their schools are among the very best in the country, with excellent exam results. Many pupils go on to leading universities.
Ms Randall hopes her younger daughter, who's nine, could benefit from the new grammar annexe and believes it would be a "positive move".
"Many parents would support it," she says.
Sarah Shilling, of the Sevenoaks Grammar School Campaign, believes parents would welcome a new girls' school, "but we're only half way there. To get the whole way we need our boys catered for, too."
Many opponents of grammar schools - like Sir Michael Wilshaw, the Ofsted chief inspector - nonetheless support streaming within schools, teaching by ability groups.
In Sevenoaks one multi-ability school is using this approach to challenge the grammar schools on their own turf.
In a year eight art class at Knole Academy, 13-year-old Mustafa works on a piece of pop art.
He tells me he's only just arrived at the school, he had been at one of the most selective grammars in Kent.
He doesn't see any difference at all: "We're learning the same things. I think this school might even be better." He'd had a long journey to school before, taking two trains. Now it is a quick bus ride.
Mary Boyle, tells me that initially parents were sceptical.
"When we set it up we invited prospective parents to come along. We had three turn up. But now we have over 100 people applying every year."
She believes the 11 plus exam unfairly decides a child's future.
"I think children are badged when they're told they've failed the 11 plus - and also when they're told not to bother sitting it at all. So you're deciding a child's future when they're barely 11".
The advantage of Knole Academy is that children get a second chance.
Georgia, 14, failed the eleven plus by just a few marks in Maths, so she came to Knole.
After a year, she was promoted into the grammar stream. Now she's hoping to be a solicitor, and would like to go to Cambridge.
"I've slowly worked my way up and I'm on target to get good grades in my GCSEs" she said.
"I wouldn't change my school for the world."
As yet no pupils in the grammar stream have sat any public examinations: Georgia's year will be the first to sit GCSE.
Many parents remain sceptical.
"Generally speaking, if a child passes the 11 plus both the child and their parents want to go to a grammar school" said Sarah Randall.
"And in Kent there is the 11 plus - it's not going away. Given that, and the increasing population, it seems crazy that there isn't another grammar school being built in Sevenoaks".
The leader of Kent County Council, Paul Carter, has urged the education secretary to approve the new grammar school annexe quickly. He says it could cost his council Â£4.5m if it does not go ahead.
Contractors are already working on the site, which will also house a new free school.
Mr Carter says the decision to build both schools together had been agreed with the Education Funding Agency, a branch of the Department for Education.
Some doubt whether a new site 10 miles away from the main school, along a busy main road, can really be seen as an extension.
Robert McCartney QC, chairman of the National Grammar Schools Association, believes it cannot, and that it will, in effect, be a new school.
But he would like to see the law changed so that new grammars can be set up. "That applies to all other types of school," he says, "why not grammars?"
After 30 March the so-called election "purdah" prevents the government from making announcements about new or controversial matters.
If the annexe is approved, it would send a positive signal to other schools and other local authorities seeking to expand their grammar provision.
Labour believes approval would show the Conservatives have moved to the right of the political spectrum.
"David Cameron once said that selective education was unpopular with parents and that parents did not believe it was right for children to be divided into successes and failures at 11," said Tristram Hunt, the shadow education secretary.
"But now his government looks set to sign off on the first new grammar school in 50 years. Not even Margaret Thatcher approved the expansion of selective education. This is more evidence that he has abandoned the centre ground."
You can hear Sanchia Berg's report on the Today programme on Monday 2 March from 06:00 GMT on BBC Radio 4.


Ciara Mageean had to settle for third place in the 800m at an entertaining Morton Games meeting at Santry.

Portaferry woman Mageean, 25, clocked 2:02.20 as she finished behind Britain's Adelle Tracey (2:01.53) and New Zealander Angela Petty (2:01.82).
"I put myself there on the final lap and felt good but I'm more geared up to 1500m now and the legs tied up in the home straight," said the Down athlete.
Brian Gregan improved his 400m personal best to 45.28 seconds as he triumphed.
The Dubliner's new PB cut 0.20 seconds off his recent time set in Geneva as he continued his return to form this season.
As he prepares for the World Championships in London, Gregan will hold out realistic hopes that the 45-second barrier could be in reach over the remainder of the summer.
Gregan was in a class of his own as his powerful performance left him more than a second ahead of Brazil's Anderson Henriques (46.51).
In the women's 200m, Amy Foster clocked 23.96 to take third place behind Britain's Margaret Adeoye who overhauled the fast-starting Phil Healy and the Northern Irishwoman in the closing 50 metres.
Letterkenny man Danny Mooney was an agonising 0.12 seconds outside the four-minute barrier in a thrilling men's mile.
The first 12 finishers all ducked under four minutes with last Friday's Letterkenny International winner American Robert Domanic taking another victory in 3:55.71.
Domanic held off fast-finishing Australian Morgan McDonald (3:55.79) while Ireland's Sean Tobin, a team-mate of Domanic's at the University of Mississippi, broke the four-minute barrier for the first time as he clocked 3:58.70 to finish 11th.
Another outstanding performance was produced by Australian Stewart McSweyn in the men's 5,000m as he bettered Eamonn Coghlan's meeting record set in the early 1980s.
With legendary Coghlan in attendance, McSweyn clocked 13:19.99 to achieve the World Championship qualifying standard and put himself in line to compete in London next month.
Ironically, Coghlan's son John was the pacemaker in Wednesday's race as he took the athletes through the opening mile in a perfect four minutes and 20 seconds.
Another performance of note was produced in the women's 800m B race as Sonia O'Sullivan's daughter, Sophie, took victory in 2:11.13 with Ireland's first lady of running watching on.
In the men's 400m B race, the Paul McKee-trained Ben Maze ran well to clock 47.71 which left him behind English winner Jamal Rhoden-Stevens (47.36).


The Commons Speaker, John Bercow, is not afraid to stick his neck out - but at least he won't get his head cut off, unlike a few of his predecessors....

It has always been a role with the potential for controversy.
Sir Peter de la Mare, the Speaker or "Prolocutor" of the Good Parliament in April 1376 opened the first day with a long address on the shortcomings of the Crown - military failures, financial and moral corruption. Royal favourites were imprisoned. King Edward III's mistress, Alice Perrers, was condemned to "seclusion".
But by the autumn, royalty had fought back. The Parliament was dissolved and most of its work was undone. The King's mistress was back at Court.
The King's son, John of Gaunt, had Sir Peter de la Mare thrown in jail.
And the new Speaker was John of Gaunt's own steward, the far more biddable Sir Thomas Huntingford.
Until the 17th Century, the Speaker's loyalty was to the Crown rather than to MPs.  But they were often blamed if they delivered news the monarch didn't like.
It could be a dangerous job: seven Speakers were beheaded between 1394 and 1535.  That's why even today a new Speaker traditionally makes a show of being dragged reluctantly to the Chair.
Staying on the right side of the Crown was especially tricky during the turmoil of the Wars of the Roses, when it was hard to be sure who would end up being the King.  One Speaker, John Wenlock, tried to hedge his bets by fighting on the side of both the Yorkists and the Lancastrians.
It didn't work out well. He was killed at the Battle of Tewkesbury, allegedly by his own commander who blamed Wenlock's general indecisiveness for the defeat.
Gradually, the Speaker's role became one of representing Parliament, rather than the monarch.
When Charles I came in person to the Commons on 4 January 1642 to arrest five MPs for treason, Speaker William Lenthall refused to reveal where they were. Hitherto seen as a rather timorous chap, this was his moment.
He fell to his knees, but told the King: "May it please your Majesty, I have neither eyes to see nor tongue to speak in this place but as the House is pleased to direct me, whose servant I am here."
The King was humiliated and left without the men he'd come for.
John Bercow is being criticised by some MPs today for - in their view - failing to be impartial on political issues. But the Speaker's impartiality is a relatively modern notion. In fact, some Speakers held other government offices at the same time.
They could take part in some debates and vote, when they weren't actually presiding over business.
Arthur Onslow, who had the job for more than 30 years, began to change that. In fact, he used to boast of his impartiality - to the great irritation and disappointment of the Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole, who'd helped him to the job.
It wasn't until the Victorian era that our current ideas of impartiality became the norm - though Irish Nationalists in the 1880s felt that Speaker Henry Brand stepped over the line in helping to put down their disruption in the Commons over Irish Home rule. In January 1881, they prolonged debate for 41 hours.
There were disorderly scenes. Irish MPs defied the Chair. And so, Speaker Brand helped the government to invent new procedures, still in use today, to cut the debate short on the Coercion Bill for Ireland.
In spite of the controversies, it's almost unprecedented to sack a Speaker.
Although in recent times, Michael Martin, was pressured into resigning, the only other one to be ousted forcibly was Sir John Trevor in 1695, who'd been found guilty of accepting a Â£1,000 bribe.
He also had the disadvantage of being so cross-eyed that MPs couldn't tell if he was giving them the nod to speak, or looking at someone else.
And of course, for any MP who tries to oust a Speaker but fails, there's a big risk that in future debates, the Speaker seems strangely unable to see them at all, when they're hoping to be called.


Widnes suffered their seventh straight Super League defeat as Hull KR won for the second time in three games to move within three points of the top eight.

Rovers led 6-0 at the break thanks to Shaun Lunt's converted try.
Ken Sio's early second-half try, also converted by Ben Cockayne, doubled the home side's advantage.
But, despite Gil Dudson and Corey Thompson both crossing for Widnes, further scores by James Greenwood and Albert Kelly closed out victory.
Cockayne landed all four conversions, while Rhys Hanbury improved both Widnes tries.
Thompson's 14th try of the season takes him within two of Super League's top scorer, Castleford's Denny Solomona.
Hull KR coach James Webster: "It was a scrappy game. Widnes came to play and I thought it was a physical encounter.
"It wasn't a classic, but it was two desperate teams who had a right go. The pleasing thing for me was the way we defended.
"They had long periods of time on our try line and I was confident we could hold out. Hopefully that continues to improve over the coming weeks."
Widnes Vikings coach Denis Betts: "We're very disappointed. We're hurting badly.
"The score suggests we didn't defend well but we had opportunities to win.
"KR played with energy and had real purpose. Every game we play from now on is going to be like a cup final."
Hull KR: Cockayne; Sio, Minns, Horne, Wardill; Blair, Kelly; Tilse, Lunt, Walker, Greenwood, Donaldson, Allgood.
Replacements: Moran, Boudebza, Lawler, Green.
Widnes: Hanbury; Thompson, Runciman, Dean, Chamberlain; Mellor, Heremaia; O'Carroll, White, Dudson, Houston, Whitley, Cahill.
Replacements: Johnstone, Manuokafoa, Sa, Leuluai.
Referee: Robert Hicks (RFL).


A London council is being sued for failing to ensure a polling station was accessible to people with disabilities.

In the first case of its kind in the UK, Adam Lotun, a wheelchair user, is claiming his human rights were breached because he could not vote last year.
Mr Lotun said he could get no further than the front door because of a ramp and a drop to the floor inside.
Kingston Council says work is under way to ensure its polling station is fully accessible on 7 May.
Mr Lotun had been attempting to vote at last year's European and local elections when he discovered he could not get into the polling station at the Sunray Community Centre in Tolworth, south-west London, despite signs stating it had disabled access.
'Excluded'
He claims he asked staff to bring the ballot box to a private place outside, but they refused and he ended up not voting.
"It made me feel worthless as an individual, excluded as a member of society," he told the BBC. "I was just a second class citizen - my voice did not count at all."
Angry at what he feels is a breach of his human rights, Mr Lotun is now suing the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames.
His solicitor Chris Fry said: "The duty on every local authority is to ensure that the buildings themselves are fully accessible so that every qualified voter can cast that vote.
"For there still to be issues arising like Adam's, you wonder how many disabled voters are going to be left out in the cold come the general election day this year."
Of course postal voting is an option for anyone who can't get to their local polling station on election day and many disabled people find it particularly handy.
I asked Adam Lotun why he chose not to use his postal vote. He explained that as someone who has only been using a wheelchair for a relatively short amount of time - a transition he found difficult - he prefers to join his wife and be part of his local community.
For some disabled people, postal voting isn't always the answer as it doesn't cater for all impairments. For people with learning disabilities for example, the paperwork can be quite overwhelming.
I met Jackie Venus who was part of 'Operation Disabled Vote', a battle bus that's touring London encouraging disabled people to vote. Ms Venus is visually impaired and for her, postal voting works up until the point she has to sign off her vote by putting her signature in a box.
She says she then has to ask for another person to sign her name, meaning her vote isn't private.
Choosing a postal vote can be a hassle-free option, but many disabled people like Adam feel it shouldn't be the only choice.
Frustrating
A survey carried out by disability charity Scope after the 2010 general election suggested that 67% of all polling stations were not fully accessible.
Overall voter turnout was 65%, but figures suggest that among disabled people it was 33%.
Currently, the Electoral Commission issues guidance to councils and returning officers on what should be in place come polling day.
Andrew Scallan, the commission's director of electoral administration, admitted that it can get frustrating when he hears stories about people not being able to vote.
"Local authority returning officers work day in and day out with their people -  they know their area and they want to deliver a good service," he said.
"But on 7 May this year, there will be 47,000 polling stations, well over 100,000 staff involved, so there is bound to be human error in all of that."
Kingston Council said its polling stations will be fully accessible on polling day.
A spokeswoman said: "Work is taking place to rip out the existing ramp, install a new ramp and sort out the entrance way.  This should ensure the place is fully accessible to anyone else with mobility problems."
She added: "When we book polling stations we ask the caretaker/key holder to confirm that they have full wheelchair access, whether we need to provide a ramp to make the venue fully accessible and to inform us ASAP after completing the booking form if there are changes to the building that could affect the use of the building."
But Mr Lotun, who lives 300 yards from the polling station in Kingston, is continuing with his case in the hope that one day all local authorities will have a legal duty to make sure everyone can vote no matter what their disability.


The developer of the Ubuntu operating system has turned to a crowdfunding site in an attempt to launch a handset pre-installed with its software.

London-based Canonical is seeking to raise $32m (£20.8m) over the next 30 days to produce 40,000 devices.
To succeed it needs to raise several times more cash than any other crowd-financed project has done before.
However, one market watcher said even if succeeds, the mobile OS would probably still struggle to gain ground.
Canonical has said that if it manages to hit its goal using Indiegogo's website it plans to deliver the phones to qualifying backers by May 2014.
Indiegogo's current funding record is $1,665,380 which was raised by Scanadu Scout - a scheme to build a Star Trek-style Tricorder medical scanning device.
Its rival Kickstarter's record is $10,266,845 for the Pebble smart watch.
As of Tuesday morning, the Ubuntu Edge phone had attracted just over $3,295,000 worth of pledges, but the terms of the campaign mean Canonical does not receive the cash unless it hits its target.
Canonical says Linux-based Ubuntu is different to other smartphone operating systems because it can run the same desktop applications as a PC installed with its software.
Programs look like a standard mobile app when the handset is being used as a standalone device, and then change their user interfaces to that of a desktop application when the phone is docked with a monitor. In addition the OS supports apps written in the HTML5 web language, albeit at slower speeds.
Canonical began offering a version of its system which can be run on a limited number of Android devices in February, and does not charge for the download.
But it has decided that backers need to commit $600 on day one or $830 on the remaining days of the crowdfunding campaign to secure one of its forthcoming Ubuntu Edge handsets. That is roughly double the cost of LG's Nexus 4 mobile, which supports its software.
Canonical's founder, Mark Shuttleworth, defended the sum saying that, in return, enthusiasts would secure a "Formula 1" device.
"The new handsets will have substantially more Ram [random access memory] than a typical high-end phone," he told the BBC.
"I would describe today's devices as being more useful as a thin client... offloading most of the processing to the cloud.
"What we're interested in is the next generation, giving you enough horsepower to actually have the full desktop experience powered by the phone."
In addition to four gigabytes of Ram, the firm is also promising an above average 128GB of storage and to make the handset's 4.5in (11.5cm) screen out of sapphire crystal - a tough substance already used by the premium Vertu brand. It will also offer an option to boot into Android if desired.
Mr Shuttleworth said that the Ubuntu Edge would be made by an Asian manufacturer which already made handsets for other firms, but declined to name the company.
He added that his firm only expected to break even on the project, but hoped it would stoke wider interest in Ubuntu as Canonical pursued efforts to get other firms to sell devices pre-installed with its software.
However, he acknowledged that the size of the Indiegogo funding goal meant his firm risked failing to secure any cash.
"We're very sanguine we may not hit the green light level," he said.
"But I think the timing for a record attempt like this is very good - there's a sense the mobile industry has become constrained in its ability to deliver innovation.
"If you're focusing on very high volume markets there's a lot of risk to you in introducing a new technology to a device that you want to sell 40 or 50 million units."
Canonical makes money by charging for support and training for Ubuntu and also plans to take a share of sales from online marketplaces offered by handset makers who adopt its software.
Ubuntu is seeking to gain ground in an increasingly crowded smartphone marketplace.
Google's Android and Apple's iOS currently dominate sales well ahead of Blackberry's BB10 and Microsoft's Windows Phone rivals.
Earlier this month, the first phones running Mozilla's Firefox OS also went on sale; Joalla recently started taking pre-orders for handsets running its Sailfish system, based on Nokia's cancelled Meego platform; and Samsung and Intel have just launched a $4m fund to encourage developers to make apps for the forthcoming Tizen system.
"There's a groundswell of operating systems coming to market," said Nick Dillon, senior analyst at the telecoms consultancy Ovum.
"The challenge for Ubuntu is it needs to offer something unique and compelling.
"Using your phone as your single device is different, but at the moment it seems a niche proposition.
"Ubuntu has been relatively successful in the PC market, but it's not a big consumer brand in the way some of the other big mobile companies - like Blackberry, Nokia and Microsoft are - and even they're having a tough time of it."
Canonical's campaign will run until 21 August.


A nursery worker has admitted 31 sex offences involving children.

Jamie Chapman pleaded guilty to 22 counts of causing or inciting sexual activity with children, including the rape of a teenage boy, and nine counts of making and distributing indecent photos, West Midlands Police said.
The 28-year-old, from Solihull, appeared at Birmingham Crown Court.
He was remanded in custody to reappear at the same court on 22 May for sentencing.
More updates on this and other stories in Birmingham and Black Country
At the time of Mr Chapman's arrest last November, police said there was no evidence to suggest inappropriate contact between him and children at the nursery where he worked.