Labour’s 2024 manifesto set out a number of big changes aimed at strengthening democratic participation, such as improving voter registration, addressing inconsistencies in voter ID rules and extending the franchise to 16 and 17 year olds.

Twenty-five years after the introduction of the UK’s political finance regime, and a billion pounds of donations later, the manifesto also committed to “strengthening the rules around donations to political parties” – something that has become more pressing as high-profile actors flirt with introducing significant sums of money into the UK’s party funding system.

So what difference would these proposed changes make to the UK electoral system? Can they reignite voter confidence and engagement in the democratic process? What are the lessons learnt from the 2024 general election about turnout, the voter ID requirement, and candidate abuse and intimidation? And what should the government prioritise to ensure the electoral system is ready for the next general election in 2029 and able to address growing threats?

To reflect on last summer’s election and to discuss how the government’s plans will affect the way elections work, we were joined by an expert panel:

Lewis Baston, Political journalist and author

Matteo Bergamini, Founder and CEO of Shout Out UK

Professor Jane Green, Co-Director of the British Election Study

John Pullinger, Chair of the Electoral Commission

The event was chaired by Dr Hannah White, Director and CEO of the Institute for Government.

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