UK voters will have to take ID to the ballot box at local elections in pilot areas under new plans to combat electoral fraud.
Chris Skidmore, minister for the constitution, announced the trials would start from 2018 after a report on voting fraud by Sir Eric Pickles, the anti-corruption tsar and former communities secretary.
Ministers will also consider Pickles’ recommendations about measures to check nationality of voters, creating safe zones around polling stations to stop intimidation, and ending vote “harvesting”, in which postal votes are submitted in bulk.
Some of the key recommendations under consideration include a ban on the handling of completed postal ballots by political campaigners, limiting it to family members or carers, and requiring people to reregister for postal votes every three years.
Although the scale of voter fraud is not thought to be widespread, the Cabinet Office said it was planning to bring forward new guidance for electoral registration officers who conduct the polls.
The pilots for ID in polling stations will be be conducted at the local government elections in May 2018. Voters in those areas will be required to bring ID to prove who they are before they can vote, to prevent anyone fraudulently taking another person’s ballot paper.
Local authorities will be invited to apply to trial different types of identification, including forms of photo ID such as driving licences and passports, or formal correspondence such as a utilities bill to prove their address, backed by a signature check.
Skidmore said: “The government’s view is that electoral fraud is unacceptable on any level. I want to protect the right of everyone to have their say and participate in our democracy. That is why the new measures we are announcing today will protect anyone who is at risk of being bullied, undermined or tricked out of their vote – and their democratic right.
“By eliminating fraud and tackling improper practices, we are ensuring the integrity of our electoral system, while building a clear and secure democracy that works for everyone.”
ID is already required at polling stations in Northern Ireland, where voters must bring an electoral ID card, but the rest of the UK is not considering introducing new forms of identification for voting.
