Dear Constituent,
 
Thank you for contacting me regarding the introduction of mandatory Voter ID.
 
I share your concerns – the Government’s ‘Electoral Integrity Bill’ is voter suppression, plain and simple.
 
The Government claims that the introduction of Voter ID will ‘restore integrity’ to our electoral system by preventing voter impersonation. In reality, our electoral system is safe and secure, with its integrity already intact. Whilst of course electoral fraud is a serious crime and should be tackled appropriately, it is thankfully extremely rare in the UK – in the various elections held in 2019 over 59 million votes were cast, yet there was only one single conviction for voter fraud.
 
The introduction of Voter ID threatens to shut millions of voters out of our democratic processes - 3.5 million people, or 7.5% of the electorate, do not have access to any form of photo ID, so under the Government’s proposed plans would not be able to vote. This will disproportionately exclude already marginalised communities, such as Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority voters, who are far less likely to possess photo ID and may also exclude older and disabled voters who already face barriers to participating democratically.
 
Labour is entirely opposed to these plans, which are forecast to cost at least £17 million per general election. It is shocking that the Tories are proposing spending millions on a solution to a non-existent problem whilst the country begins to emerge from a yearlong national crisis that has ravaged our already underfunded local services and NHS. This is a time to be investing in our vital services, supporting young people that have suffered massively during the pandemic and aiding our businesses as ‘normal’ life restarts, not throwing money down the drain to supress voters.
 
Now more than ever the Government should be encouraging confidence in our democratic system, rather than scaremongering and putting up discriminatory barriers. Labour is working closely with civil rights organisations to oppose these plans whenever possible, and will challenge them when they eventually come to Parliament.
 
In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact me again if I can be of assistance on this or any other issue.

Yours sincerely,

Peter Dowd MP