Prime Minister Keir Starmer is set to announce plans for mandatory digital ID cards for all working adults, a move expected to spark a row with civil liberties campaigners. The proposals, dubbed the “Brit card”, will be outlined on Friday at a conference on progressive politics and immigration control.
The government argues that the cards are necessary to tackle illegal immigration and ensure people have the right to work in the UK. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is a backer of the plans, having previously expressed support for ID cards. Starmer has said digital IDs could “play an important part” in making Britain less attractive to illegal migrants, echoing French claims that the lack of official cards acts as a “pull factor”.
The plans would require legislation and face opposition from privacy groups. However, No 10 believes the national mood has shifted since Tony Blair’s ID card scheme was abandoned in the 2000s. The technology is expected to be built on the existing “One Login” infrastructure, which already allows access to about 50 government services.
In his speech, Starmer will also criticise the far right for injecting “poisonous” discourse into national life, while acknowledging that immigration and borders need to be controlled. He will argue that Labour previously got it wrong on migration, saying it has been too easy for people to enter the country and work illegally.
The idea originated from a Labour Together paper proposing a free, secure digital ID stored on a smartphone via a gov.uk Wallet app. The thinktank claimed the card could help avoid another Windrush scandal and reduce visa overstayers. The Tony Blair Institute welcomed the plans, with its director of government innovation, Alexander Iosad, saying the move would modernise the system.
