Agenda item

This council notes that:

a)    The government have now published the Electoral Integrity Bill;

b)    This bill contains provisions to require voter ID;

c)     There is no evidence that there is any problem in the United Kingdom with voter impersonation;

d)    Research in 2015 by the Electoral Commission found that 7.5% of the electorate (3.5 million people) did not have access to photo ID.

e)    The Electoral Commission’s 2021 winter tracker found that more disadvantaged groups are more likely to not have ID, including the unemployed (11%), those renting from a local authority (13%) or housing association (12%), as well as disabled people (8%). The government’s commissioned research found that older voters (aged 85+) were less likely than those in younger groups to have ID that was recognisable (91% compared to 95%–98%). It also found that those with severely limiting disabilities, the unemployed, people without qualifications, and those who had never voted before were all less likely to hold any form of photo ID.

f)      In the 2019 local elections where Broxtowe was a pilot area showed that 231 Broxtowe residents were turned away from polling stations for not having the correct ID, and that of these 69 people failed to return later. If this was replicated across each of the 363 district or unitary council areas in Great Britain this would mean that 83,853 people would be turned away at the polling stations and of these 25,047 people would not return to vote.

g)    These figures do not include people who did not attempt to vote because they did not have the right ID or those who left after talking to party tellers before entering the polling station.

h)    That research by the cabinet office showed that implementing full voter ID across the country was likely to cost up to £20million per general election;

i)       That requiring voters to produce ID is likely to act as a method of voter suppression;

j)       The Conservative MP David Davis said that “Voter ID will potentially disenfranchise thousands of people. It is an illogical and illiberal solution to a non-existent problem.”

This Council calls on the government to abandon proposals to introduce voter ID and calls on both our MP’s to vote against these proposals.

The following Notice of Motion had been received from Councillor H Land and seconded by Councillor T A Cullen.

‘’This Council notes that:

a)    The government have now published the Electoral Integrity Bill;

b)    This bill contains provisions to require voter ID;

c)    There is no evidence that there is any problem in the United Kingdom with voter impersonation;

d)    Research in 2015 by the Electoral Commission found that 7.5% of the electorate (3.5 million people) did not have access to photo ID.

e)    The Electoral Commission’s 2021 winter tracker found that more disadvantaged groups are more likely to not have ID, including the unemployed (11%), those renting from a local authority (13%) or housing association (12%), as well as disabled people (8%). The government’s commissioned research found that older voters (aged 85+) were less likely than those in younger groups to have ID that was recognisable (91% compared to 95%–98%). It also found that those with severely limiting disabilities, the unemployed, people without qualifications, and those who had never voted before were all less likely to hold any form of photo ID.

f)     In the 2019 local elections where Broxtowe was a pilot area showed that 231 Broxtowe residents were turned away from polling stations for not having the correct ID, and that of these 69 people failed to return later. If this was replicated across each of the 363 district or unitary council areas in Great Britain this would mean that 83,853 people would be turned away at the polling stations and of these 25,047 people would not return to vote.

g)    These figures do not include people who did not attempt to vote because they did not have the right ID or those who left after talking to party tellers before entering the polling station.

h)    That research by the cabinet office showed that implementing full voter ID across the country was likely to cost up to £20million per general election;

i)     That requiring voters to produce ID is likely to act as a method of voter suppression;

j)     The Conservative MP David Davis said that “Voter ID will potentially disenfranchise thousands of people. It is an illogical and illiberal solution to a non-existent problem.”

This Council calls on the government to abandon proposals to introduce voter ID and calls on both our MP’s to vote against these proposals.’’

Members debated the motion and Councillor J Parker called for a recorded vote, which was seconded by at least five other Councillors. The voting was as follows:

On being put to the meeting the motion was carried.