The United Kingdom has pledged to support the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to ensure free, fair and credible elections in 2023.

The British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing, who gave the assurance in an interview with NAN on Saturday, said the UK would monitor the elections closely.

The Commissioner revealed that the UK government would use its visa programme to punish whoever is involved in electoral violence either directly or indirectly.

She said, “I should say we always say that each election alongside our U.S partners that we will have eyes on; we will be monitoring this election closely on the ground and through other means.

“And if we understand that an individual has been involved in violence, either directly or through inciting violence, we can use our visa programme to ensure that that person is not allowed to travel to the UK”.

Laing further expressed optimism that with the new electoral law which she said was supported by the UK government, the 2023 election will be free and fair.