UK government withdraws a major element of its plans for digital ID

The ministers have reversed schemes on a key aspect of the planned digital ID plans, which leaves open the possibility that individuals may be allowed to use alternative means of identification to prove their entitlement to work.

It will imply that the IDs, which have been declared rather controversially back in September, will not be required of working-age individuals anymore, as the only compulsory aspect was the demonstration of the right to work in the UK.

Although the officials claimed that this was not a turnaround but only a fine-tuning before the system is thoroughly consulted on how it would operate, this, however, will be interpreted as the second action of policy changes, such as on the business rates and the inheritance tax for farmers.

Digital IDs, which Keir Starmer proposed would be introduced in 2029 when they were announced, were to be voluntary, except that they would be mandatory to enable people to demonstrate that they were legally permitted to work.

This was an advantage of the plan highlighted by the prime minister. According to him, digital ID is a huge opportunity for the UK. It will make it harder to work illegally in this country, and our borders will be even safer. Labour MPs intend to fight proposals to curb anti-animal testing protests.

Individuals will continue to be asked to confirm their identity at the digital level, but again a process yet to be completed, which may involve an already present document like a passport. It is hoped that this would curb illegal working without the controversial effect of a de facto compulsory ID system.

As we know, the reason why people who desired to use digital ID could do so was at least one of the driving forces behind the change, and it is not the PR challenge of a mandatory aspect. 

Shadow Cabinet Office minister, Mike Wood, said: “What was sold as a tough measure to tackle illegal working is now set to become yet another costly, ill-thought-out experiment abandoned at the first sign of pressure from Labour’s backbenches.”

Lisa Smart, the Liberal Democrats Cabinet Office spokesperson, said: “No 10 must be bulk ordering motion sickness tablets at this rate to cope with all their U-turns.

“It was clear right from the start this was a proposal doomed to failure, that would have cost obscene amounts of taxpayers’ money to deliver absolutely nothing.

“The government now needs to confirm that the billions of pounds earmarked for their mandatory digital ID scheme will be spent on the NHS and frontline policing instead.”

According to a government source, the new plans would not alter the central idea of the initial proposal, which was to make the checks on eligibility to work more difficult, as was done in other nations.