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UNP to support ID bill
The United National Party (UNP) has agreed to support the Elections (Special Provisions) bill that seeks to make the use of identity cards mandatory for voters at all future elections, provided its implementation was delayed by a year.

The bill is expected to be passed in Parliament on Tuesday with several amendments, including a time frame for its implementation.

UNP MP Joseph Michael Perera told The Sunday Times that the party was voting for the bill and the government had agreed to the amendments.

The Opposition had earlier argued that making IDs compulsory for voters would disenfranchise a large number, mainly the displaced in the North and the East and those in the estate sector.

The government had assured the Opposition that national IDs would be issued to those without them within a year.
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