THE SNP's Richard Lochhead has slammed Scottish Tory leader and MP Douglas Ross for backing a bill “that undermines democracy”.
The SNP MSP criticised Ross for voting in favour of the UK Government’s Elections Bill in the House of Commons.
Lochhead said: “The Elections Bill is not only deeply flawed but it is an outright attack on democracy from a Tory Government that is hellbent on disenfranchising the electorate.
“I was deeply disappointed to see Moray’s own Tory MP troop through the lobbies to back this bill which will make it much harder for the most marginalised communities to vote and take part in elections. We need to call this out for what it is and it is frankly a cynical attempt at voter suppression."
READ MORE: These Scottish Tory MPs voted to introduce voter ID
The Tories plan to make photographic ID mandatory before casting ballots at polling stations in UK general elections, which it has been warned will impact on the number of people voting in marginalised communities where a greater number do not have such identification.
UK ministers have been accused of “dodging scrutiny” by Dr Jess Garland, director of policy and research at the Electoral Reform Society.
She said that it “further weakened the integrity of our elections”.
The Westminster opposition failed to block the voter ID mandate in the Commons on January 17.
Lochhead denounced the bill as voter suppression and said that by backing it, Ross sought to further complicate voting for already disenfranchised communities.
He said: “I am unaware of any voter fraud in Moray so maybe Mr Ross would like to enlighten his constituents as to why he feels this is necessary?
“Mr Ross spends a lot more time in Scotland these days doing his other job so it speaks volumes about his views that he made sure he was present for this particular vote where he voted the wrong way."
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel