04/05/2022
The right wing are not popular with young people, who largely reject the politics of the “Daily Mail” and populist talk shows. So, the Conservative government intends to make it difficult for them to vote. That’s the accusation of a report in the street sold paper The Big Issue this week. The paper says that the new Elections Bill demands photographic identification to be given at the Polling Station when a person is casting their ballot. This is a major departure from British Parliamentary convention and will benefit people who have ID in the shape of Passports and driving licenses. The majority of those without these forms of ID are people on lower incomes, in temporary housing, students and other marginalised groups. To make matters worse, the Elections Bill specifies that older people can use their Oyster Cards as ID but a Young Person’s Railcard will not be valid. The Labour Party has accused the Conservative party of “trying to rig the rules of the game to help themselves” with the Elections Bill. Recent research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has found that low-income potential voters are six times less likely to have a photo ID than their wealthier counterparts. Dr Jess Garland, director of policy and research at the Electoral Reform Society said: “Allowing bus passes and Oyster cards for older voters but refusing to accept the same forms of ID for young people is the kind of democratic discrimination that make this bill so dangerous”.
