New election rules could turn voters away

New rules are due to start in May 2023

Thousands of voters in Plymouth could be turned away from polling stations in next year’s local elections if newly required voter ID requirements are not in place. 

The Elections Act, passed in April, states all voters will have to show photo ID or be stopped from voting.  The rules are due to start in the May 2023 elections in England. 

But some election officials say they have not had enough time to prepare which could lead to allegations of unfairness. 

Plymouth Labour leader and councillor for Ham, Tudor Evans, will introduce a motion at the full council meeting on Monday (21 November) calling for the implementation of new requirements for voter ID to be postponed until 2024.

“The government is estimating that 4 per cent of the electorate will not have the prescribed voter ID available, that’s 1.9 million people who will not have the requisite ID and local councils will be expected to produce it,” said Cllr Evans.  

The rules state all voters for English or UK-wide general elections must show photographic identification or produce a Voter Authority Certificate. 

Cllr Evans said: “We worked it out that one electoral officer doing this for a whole week would take them 36 weeks to process 8,000 applications.

“Electoral officers are telling us with one voice that they can’t do this by May 2023.

“What we are asking the council to do is to formally register its opposition to this timetable and support the postponement of the implementation until May 2024.”

There are also fears the new rules will hit young voters most and has led to claims of voter suppression. 

The list of acceptable forms of ID includes passports and driving licences and a range of travel cards, predominantly held by older people. 

For example, a blue badge, older person’s bus pass or freedom pass are acceptable as ID but not student IDs, library cards or some young people’s travel cards. 

The Electoral Reform Society is calling for an inquiry into the implementation of the voter ID by the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, fearing election staff will not be ready for the changes by May 2023.