Sir Keir Starmer is under renewed pressure to abandon his flagship policy for a mandatory Digital ID system after a major survey revealed public support has collapsed.
Poll Shows Dramatic Shift in Public Opinion
A long-running YouGov poll has tracked a stark reversal in sentiment towards a national identity card system. In June last year, 57 per cent of the public supported the idea, with only 25 per cent opposed, figures consistent with the previous five years.
However, when the same question was put to 1,700 Britons in December – two months after the Prime Minister announced the policy as a tool to tackle illegal immigration – support had nosedived. Only 38 per cent said they backed the plan, while opposition surged to 47 per cent.
The intensity of feeling also shifted markedly. Among opponents, the proportion who said they were ‘strongly opposed’ leapt from 12 per cent to 31 per cent in just six months. Conversely, strong supporters halved from 24 per cent to just 14 per cent.
Critics Slam 'Gimmick' and Threat to Freedoms
The polling was conducted before the Daily Mail reported that ministers had secretly discussed issuing Digital ID to newborn babies, alongside their standard child health ‘red book’. The government has so far refused to detail the scheme's full scope or cost, promising only a public consultation in the new year.
Shadow Science Secretary Julia Lopez told this newspaper: ‘This is a gimmick, rushed out without answering the most basic questions about privacy, scope, or control. Digital ID should be voluntary, limited, and built around consent.’
She added: ‘If Starmer wants to improve his dismal popularity, he should drop this idea now. Voters don’t want a government-issued digital pass for daily life.’
Silkie Carlo, Director of civil rights group Big Brother Watch, was more forceful. ‘The public didn’t vote for, don’t need and don’t want digital ID cards. If Starmer continues to force this mandatory scheme on an unwilling public it will be deeply undemocratic,’ she said.
Carlo warned the scheme could cost £1.8 billion in taxpayer funds and erode fundamental freedoms. ‘The shocking prospect of digital IDs for babies shows that immigration control has been used as a smokescreen for a far more expansive programme of data collection,’ she stated.
Growing Political Backlash
As backlash grew over the potential extension of Digital ID to children, independent MP Rupert Lowe condemned the idea as ‘sick’ and ‘un-British’, vowing to fight it in Parliament.
A Government spokesman defended the policy, insisting: ‘Digital ID will make everyday life easier for people, ensuring public services are more personal, joined-up, and effective, while also remaining inclusive.’
Despite this assurance, the significant swing in public opinion presents a major challenge for Sir Keir Starmer, who now faces mounting calls from within and outside his party to scrap the controversial plan entirely.
