Labour should repeal the Tories' controversial voter ID policy if Keir Starmer wins power at the next general election, Sadiq Khan has said.
The Labour Mayor of London described the policy as a "deliberate Conservative tactic to suppress the vote" after hundreds were turned away from polling stations at the local elections in England.
He also said Rishi Sunak should suspend the system - due to be in play for the next general election - but admitted the Conservatives were unlikely to do so.
Speaking on Monday, he told The Mirror: "We know that some seats [at local elections in England] were won and lost by a handful of votes.
"So literally there are some seats that have been won and lost because of the Government's legislation on photo ID."
He stressed there was "no evidence" of widespread offences of voter impersonation at the ballot box, adding: "I think this is a deliberate Conservative tactic to suppress the vote.
"I think yes what a new Labour Government should be doing is repealing that part of the act."
The Labour leader has declined to say whether the party would repeal the law.
But Mr Starmer is urging the Government to speed up a review into the impact of the policy, saying there must be "lessons learned" ahead of the next the general election.
Earlier this month the Electoral Commission acknowledged that some people had been unable to vote due to a lack of ID.
It remains unclear how many were turned away and whether they were predominantly older or younger voters - but the Commission will publish an initial analysis in June.
Mr Khan added: "What the Government has got to do is look at the evidence from the elections across the country. If they are being honest with themselves and honest in relation to analysing the evidence they will pause this, suspend it for the general election.
"Knowing the Conservatives as I do, knowing they are embedded with the Republicans from America, I suspect they won't because they want to suppress turnout at the next general election.
"What I think it's important for us to do as the Labour Party is let the public know what the Government is trying to do and to encourage as many people across the country as we can to get photo ID to not allow their votes not to be counted at the general election.
"Let's make sure people vote at the next general election, get the Conservatives out, and when there's a Labour Government try and rectify these errors".
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has previously said: “It’s vital we keep our democracy secure, prevent the potential for voter fraud and bring the rest of the UK in line with Northern Ireland which has had photo identification to vote in elections since 2003.
“This follows successful pilots in 2018 and 2019, including in Woking where over 99% of people were able to successfully cast their vote.
“Following local elections in May, it is essential that we understand how voter identification has operated in practice.
“Extensive analysis of the data collected from polls is now being undertaken by the Electoral Commission and the Government, with final reports set to be published later this year.”
