by Amy Gibbons and Emily Smith, Telegraph
Prime Minister is ‘going soft on electoral fraud’ to win over Muslims, Tories claim
Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of taking a softer stance on family voting to appease the Left and win over Muslim voters.
In government, the Tories changed voter fraud guidance to ensure the Electoral Commission, which oversees UK elections, made tackling family voting a priority.
Labour has abandoned those plans despite reports of “concerningly high levels” of family voting in the Gorton and Denton by-election last month.
Family voting, which is illegal, is an attempt to influence someone’s vote in the polling booth. It has become a particular concern in parts of the country with high Muslim populations because wives culturally can take their lead from their husbands.
In 2022, the Conservative government gave the Electoral Commission tougher new guidelines for “tackling fraud”.
They included “providing clear guidance to deliver robust polls that meet the UK’s highest standards of democratic integrity”, which ensured “the secrecy of the ballot inside polling stations by making it clear in both advice and guidance that any breach of the secrecy laws or attempt to influence someone’s vote while in the polling booth is an offence”.
While the practice remains illegal, the decision by Labour to remove this guidance to the Electoral Commission has led to accusations Labour ministers no longer see tackling voter fraud as a priority.
Ministers have been accused by the Tories of “grubbing around” for Muslim votes following a surge in popularity for the Green Party. The change comes after Labour lost its stronghold seat of Gorton and Denton to Hannah Spencer, the Green Party candidate, last month.
Labour initially said it would keep the Tory guidance in place, but it has since pledged to repeal it.