Recommendation 2

It is crucial that the Government understand the scale of hesitancy to engage with the democratic process that may exist in some communities if a requirement to show photo ID at polling stations is introduced. It is regrettable that neither the Cabinet Office research nor the Government’s Equality Impact Assessment consider whether a voter ID requirement would disproportionately dissuade members of certain communities from voting. The Government should produce clear research to ascertain whether introducing a voter ID requirement would lead to hesitancy to vote amongst Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, and if so, how they plan to tackle that hesitancy.