Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the validity of veterans' ID cards as a form of identification in the May local elections.

Currently, Veterans’ Recognition Cards are not on the list of approved photographic ID for use in polling stations. This list is set in secondary legislation and further legislation would be required to add the Veterans’ Recognition Cards. A comprehensive list of the accepted forms of identification is available at the following link: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/voter-id/accepted-forms-photo-id.

Consideration will be given in the future to including the Veteran’s Recognition Card on the list of approved ID for use in polling stations, once the rollout of cards to pre-2018 veterans is complete. However, in the meantime, there is a wide range of different types of ID on the list, so a lack of Recognition Card should not act as a barrier to veterans being able to vote.