PM Starmer To Unveil Plans For UK-Wide Digital ID Scheme

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is set to outline plans for a compulsory digital ID system covering the whole of the UK in a speech on Friday.

Government insiders say the scheme is aimed at clamping down on illegal working while also modernising how the state operates.

Details are still to be worked out, with a public consultation expected to look at how the system would work for people who don’t have a smartphone or passport.

Labour last tried to bring in ID cards more than a decade ago, but the plans were scrapped when the Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition came to power.

This time, reports suggest the government wants the digital ID to be used to check people’s right to live and work in the UK, with information verified against a central database.

At present, these checks are mostly done with physical documents, though limited online options have been available since 2022.

The idea wasn’t in Labour’s election manifesto, and a similar proposal from former PM Tony Blair was previously rejected. But ministers have become increasingly keen on the scheme in recent weeks as pressure grows to tackle illegal migration.

Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden has also talked about the wider benefits, pointing to Estonia, where digital IDs allow citizens to access everything from medical records to banking and even voting.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said introducing mandatory ID would be a serious step that should be subject to a proper national debate.

She criticised the government’s announcement, describing it as a distraction from internal Labour Party politics ahead of next week’s annual conference.

Badenoch has previously argued that a digital ID scheme would not effectively address illegal working in the UK.

Reform UK also rejected the proposal, calling it a political move designed to give the impression that action is being taken on illegal immigration. The party added:

“It’s laughable that those already breaking immigration law will suddenly comply, or that digital IDs will have any impact on illegal work.

“All it will do is impinge further on the freedoms of law-abiding Brits.”

The Liberal Democrats, who previously opposed Labour’s plans for ID cards, said they could not support a mandatory scheme.

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who is preparing to launch a new left-wing party, also voiced opposition, describing compulsory digital ID as a threat to civil liberties.

More: BBC News