The Government's voter ID plans should be paused to determine if the measures are 'fit-for-purpose,' MPs have warned.
A report by the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee said the case for requiring voters to show photo ID at polling stations had ‘simply not been good enough’.
It highlighted that similar measures in Northern Ireland led to a 2.3% reduction in voter turnout when first introduced and trends have not been monitored since then.
Chair of the committee, William Wragg, said: 'We feel that the Elections Bill proposals lack a sufficient evidence base, timely consultation and transparency - all of which should be addressed before it makes any further progress.
'We cannot risk any reduction of trust in UK elections, which is why the majority of the committee is calling for the Bill to be paused to give time for more work to be done to ensure the measures are fit-for-purpose.'
A Government spokesperson said: ‘Our Elections Bill will stamp out the potential for voter fraud and will bring the rest of the UK in line with Northern Ireland, which has had photo identification to vote in elections since 2003.’
