Simon Hoare corrected the Commons record on Voter ID: Election Turnout
The words were spoken in the Commons on 22 January 2024. The correction was made by letter from the Under-Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, the hon. Member for North Dorset (Simon Hoare), and printed in Hansard's Written Corrections on 23 January 2024. The figure 7,000 in the original became 37,000 in the correction, higher by 30,000. Altogether 11 words differ between the two versions.
The question
The Government’s voter ID requirements, which allow travel cards for older people but not the young person’s equivalent, are unfair at best, but the reality is that this is political opportunism. As has just been said, analysis by the Electoral Commission following England’s 2023 local elections found that 14,000 people were unable to vote due to voter ID requirements. There is real concern, based on that data, that there will be a potential impact in the forthcoming general election. Voters at local elections are often a smaller group of more politically informed people, whereas the larger group of voters who wish to cast their vote at a general election may be less aware of the requirements. Does the Minister agree with the words of his former Cabinet colleague, the right hon. Member for North East Somerset (Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg), that “Parties that try and gerrymander end up finding their clever scheme comes back to bite them, as… we found by insisting on voter ID for elections”?
Original and corrected words
Struck through: original only. Bold: correction only.
| Original | Corrected |
|---|---|
| I do not agree with that, and nor will I take any lessons on political opportunism from the SNP. I am tempted to say that I would WhatsApp my answer to the hon. Lady, but she would probably delete it before she read it. A lot will depend on whether the identification has the relevant hologram. I also point out to the hon. Lady that— [Interruption.] She chunters from a sedentary position without wanting to listen to the answer, but of the | I do not agree with that, and nor will I take any lessons on political opportunism from the SNP. I am tempted to say that I would WhatsApp my answer to the hon. Lady, but she would probably delete it before she read it. A lot will depend on whether the identification has the relevant hologram. I also point out to the hon. Lady that— [Interruption.] She chunters from a sedentary position without wanting to listen to the answer, but of the 37,000 who did not have the right identification, 14,000 did not come back . |
More on Simon Hoare.
Receipt
| Read from | https://hansard-api.parliament.uk/debates/debate/F93CC4C8-30EA-4686-8811-59833254BB9D.json |
|---|---|
| Date read | 15 October 2026 |
| SHA-256 | a468feb985afeae69eddf3b9711b3b6a46a1427049ed3d51baa2e43839f326aa |