Extra checks for postal and proxy votes announced

The government has announced plans to add further checks to postal and proxy voting for some elections in the UK.

Voters will have to reapply for postal votes more regularly, and people will be able to cast fewer proxy votes under plans unveiled on Tuesday.

Postal and proxy voting allows people to cast ballots without having to go to a polling station in person.

The changes will reduce the opportunity for people to "steal votes", the government said.

Voters will have to reapply for a postal vote every three years, under new plans. Currently people can hold their postal vote indefinitely, but have to provide a fresh signature every five years.

And voters don't need to show ID if voting by post. But under the new rules an online identity check will be introduced for all applications for all absentee voting - which covers both postal and proxy voting.

Proxy voting allows people to authorise someone else to vote on their behalf. The current rules allow someone to do so for an unlimited number of close family members.

Under the new rules people will be able to act as a proxy for a maximum of four people, including a maximum two UK voters.

These regulations will come into effect before the next general election and apply to any future referendums and recall petitions as well.

The new rules are part of the same set of recommendations, from Lord Pickles, which called for voters to bring photo ID before being allowed to vote at the local elections on 4 May.

Bethany Bale, from Disability Rights UK, said the changes will "make voting harder for disabled people".

In a written statement, Communities Minister Baroness Scott of Brybrook said the government were "introducing appropriate safeguards to reduce the opportunity for individuals to exploit the absent voting process and steal votes".