Labour has been accused of a ‘cynical attempt to game our democracy’ over plans to water down anti-fraud checks at polling stations.
Government proposals would allow voters to use pre-paid bank cards to prove their identity – which do not contain photographs and often don’t even have somebody’s full name.
Labour’s plans to soften the law on voter ID ahead of the next election are contained in the controversial Representation of the People Bill – which would also give 16-year-olds the vote.
The Conservatives have warned proposals to allow pre-paid bank cards as voter ID will open the door to ‘widespread abuse’ following claims of ‘family voting’ during the Gorton and Denton by-election in February.
And Vijay Rangarajan, chief executive of the Electoral Commission, told MPs in March that ‘we are also concerned about the bank cards proposal’ and urged the Government to stick with the ‘existing security standard’.
However Democracy Minister Samantha Dixon has confirmed in response to a Parliamentary question that pre-paid cards without somebody’s full name will be allowed under Labour’s plans.
She said: ‘In order to be accepted at the polling station – they must be a physical credit card, charge card, debit card or prepaid card; they must display the individual’s first name and last name, or first initial and last name.’
The Labour minister added: ‘It may be possible for a reloadable, non-bank-account-linked payment card to meet these criteria.’
Labour’s plans to soften the law on voter ID ahead of the next election are contained in the controversial Representation of the People Bill – which would also give 16-year-olds the vote (stock image)
Hannah Spencer of the Green Party won the Gorton and Denton by-election – which was hit with claims of ‘family voting’ at polling booths
Pre-paid bank cards do not require credit checks and are not linked to a bank account, they also do not contain a picture and often do not have a full name, only initials.
They are also available to foreign migrants – with some companies explicitly marketing them for people ‘with no ID’ or ‘if you are new to the country’ – raising fears of electoral fraud risks.
Shadow communities secretary Sir James Cleverly said: ‘Just months after the Gorton and Denton by-election, Labour are watering down protections brought in by the Conservatives to stop voter fraud.
‘They are opening the door to widespread abuse of the electoral system, in a cynical attempt to game our democracy for their own partisan political benefit.’
The Gorton and Denton by-election, won last month by the Green Party, was hit by claims of illegal practices at polling stations.
Accredited election observers from Democracy Volunteers said they witnessed ‘concerningly high levels’ of so-called family voting – where two people use one booth and potentially tell each other who to pick – and raised their fears immediately after the polls closed.
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The independent organisation saw 32 cases, in 15 of the 22 polling stations it attended across Gorton and Denton throughout the day.
It meant several of the votes observed either caused or were potentially affected by family voting, which led to a complaint to police by runners-up Reform UK.
But Greater Manchester Police said it found no evidence of any intent to influence or refrain any person from casting a ballot and closed the investigation.
At the 2024 general election, the Electoral Commission estimated that 99.92 per cent of voters cast their ballot successfully, with just 0.08 per cent of people turned away due to not having voter ID.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said: ‘Legitimate voters should not be prevented from voting, which is why we are expanding the list of accepted IDs at the next general election.
‘Banks already conduct strong identity verification and anti-money laundering processes before opening bank accounts, and we will only allow the use of cards issued by UK-regulated banks to ensure a high level of security.’
