Cat Smith MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Voter Engagement and Youth Affairs, commenting on Government plans to require voters to show proof of identification before casting their ballot, said:

“Labour supports measures to tackle electoral fraud and will be backing a number of the reasonable proposals planned by the Government. However, requiring voters to produce specific forms of photo ID risks denying millions of electors a vote. 

"A year ago the Electoral Commission reported that 3.5 million electors -  7.5 percent of the electorate - would have no acceptable piece of photo ID. Under the Government’s proposals, these voters would either be denied a vote entirely, or in other trial areas, required to produce multiple pieces of ID, ‘one from group A, one from group B’.

"The Government should be doing all it can to encourage lawful voting and ensure a high turnout, not putting extra hurdles in the way. The plans for photo ID are like taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut, potentially denying a vote to millions.”