UK Politics

3083 readers

174 users here now

General Discussion for politics in the UK.
Please don't post to both [email protected] and [email protected] .
Pick the most appropriate, and put it there.

Posts should be related to UK-centric politics, and should be either a link to a reputable news source for news, or a text post on this community.

Opinion pieces are also allowed, provided they are not misleading/misrepresented/drivel, and have proper sources.

If you think "reputable news source" needs some definition, by all means start a meta thread. (These things should be publicly discussed)

Posts should be manually submitted, not by bot. Link titles should not be editorialised.

Disappointing comments will generally be left to fester in ratio, outright horrible comments will be removed.
Message the mods if you feel something really should be removed, or if a user seems to have a pattern of awful comments.

[email protected] appears to have vanished! We can still see cached content from this link, but goodbye I guess! :'(

founded 1 year ago

MODERATORS

[email protected]

Minister ‘sorry’ as veterans find ID card not valid for English elections (www.theguardian.com)

submitted 6 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

13 comments fedilink hide all child comments

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/14705930

Johnny Mercer says he will ‘do all I can’ to change rules after veteran turned away from polling station

Archived version: https://archive.ph/Vyz9W

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (3 children)

The purpose of a Veteran ID, from gov.uk

An HM Armed Forces Veteran Card is a way to prove that you served in the UK armed forces. The card can make it quicker and easier to apply for support as a veteran.

Its valid ID to prove you served in the military. Whoever said anything about it being a general ID? Do supermarkets accept them as valid for proof of age when buying alcohol? Does it count as valid when applying for a mortgage at a bank?

When you click “What can I use it for” at no point does it say you can use it vote or as a general valid from of ID

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-a-veteran-card-as-a-service-leaver#ways-to-use-a-veteran-card


 Ways to use a Veteran Card

There are many services available to ex-members of the armed forces.

To access these services some organisations, including charities, may need to verify that you are a veteran. This is to ensure that only those who are eligible access services specifically for veterans and their families.

As a veteran you can prove your status in many ways, and an HM Armed Forces Veteran Card is a simple way to do this.

For example, you need to verify your veteran status when you:

* [get a Veterans’ Railcard](https://www.veterans-railcard.co.uk/), entitling you to up to a third off most rail travel in England, Scotland and Wales
* [get a Defence Discount Service Card](https://www.defencediscountservice.co.uk/), to claim discounts in over 12,000 restaurants and shops, on the high street and online
* access specific offers during special events, such as free travel on public transport to and from remembrance events on the weekend of Remembrance Sunday

There are other services and government initiatives available to veterans where your Veteran Card may be useful.

This reeks of “I need to show strangers im a veteran whenever possible”.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I'm not from the UK, but shouldn't a photo ID card issued by a government agency count as proof of identity?

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago

Sure, thats a fair assumption. But, for whatever reason, this one isn’t currently

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Apparently it is recognised as a form of voter ID though. No surprises Mercer is acting as forces hero, though.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Where does it state that?

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

MOD form 90 is also known as a veterans ID card.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago

Incorrect. MOD Form 90 is military ID for active service which they are allowed to keep. The veteran ID is new.

The new card is one of three that are available to service leavers. Personnel leaving the armed forces are also able to keep their military IDs, known as the MOD Form 90, allowing them to maintain their emotional connection with their service. Additionally, veterans can access a range of discounts through the Defence Discount Service, the official MOD-endorsed service for the armed forces.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-veterans-id-cards-rolled-out-to-service-leavers

In addition to one of the new ID cards, personnel leaving the armed forces are also able to keep their military IDs, known as the MOD Form 90, and veterans can access a range of discounts through the Defence Discount Service, the official MOD-endorsed service for the armed forces.

https://www.forces.net/news/veterans-be-formally-recognised-official-id-cards

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I'm sure the mechanism for verifying identity is more complex than it appears from the outside, but it does seem very ridiculous to have a card that can answer "did this person work in the military?" And not "who is this person?" The second question seems to be a subset of the first question.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Totally agree. But the reaction to this makes it seem like veterans were being targeted and excluded. But at no point was anyone told that specific form of ID would allow you to vote.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago

I definitely agree that they weren't singled out.