Concerns raised over voter ID plans

New voter ID requirements will have a disproportionate effect on young people, Alistair Carmichael has warned.

The MP for the isles has highlighted the risk of the measures before parliament.

He said there was an “imbalance” between accepted ID for older people and the lack of options for younger folk.

He also raised newly published FOI correspondence this week showing that the Electoral Commission has warned the government that the introduction of voter ID would be neither “secure” nor “workable” by next year.

“We now have detailed proposals from the government on voter ID and we can see a number of concerns, in particular the massive imbalance between the ID that is available for younger people as opposed to those available for older people,” he said.

“We also know from published correspondence that the Electoral Commission has warned the government that the introduction of voter ID is neither ‘secure’ nor ‘workable’ by 2023.”

Responding for the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, Cat Smith MP said: “The committee has heard the points he’s made.

“It is for the government and not the commission to comment on the inclusion or exclusion of any particular form of ID.

“The commission has emphasised that voting at polling stations must remain accessible for all voters, regardless of age, and that not all voters currently have acceptable photo ID.”