WYRE Forest District Council has made more than £3,000 selling on resident’s private details from the electoral register over the last five years.

Credit reference agencies and a big e-commerce firm are some of the bodies handed people’s details between 2011 and 2016.

A Freedom of Information request has revealed how Worcestershire’s six district councils have earned £37,000 by selling the register in just five years – with Wyre Forest District Council making £3,778.50.

Pressure group Big Brother Watch has hit out at the findings, saying the practice can leave people “swamped by junk mail”.

By Government law, councils are obliged to pass on the electoral register to third parties, although they must pay set fees in order to obtain it.

After years of controversy, in 2001 the High Court ruled that householders must have the right to be omitted from one version of the register available to the likes of companies, but around 50 per cent of people never bother.

Experian, a global information services offering free online credit score checks, was one of the referencing agencies to buy the register from Wyre Forest District Council, while another notable buyer was 'Datatrans' - a big Swiss-based e-commerce firm after private details of residents in the Wyre Forest.

Daniel Nesbitt, from Big Brother Watch, said: “The edited electoral register is a waste of everyone’s time.

“It leaves residents swamped by junk mail and councils barely raise anything from selling it on.

“It is time it was abolished – citizens should not have to worry about where their personal information will end up when they register to vote.”

But a spokesman for Wyre Forest District Council said they sell the register “in accordance with the legislation”.

Ian Miller, the council’s electoral registration officer, said: “We supply and sell the electoral register in accordance with the legislation.

“The fees for copies of the register are confirmed each year by full council.”