Sir Keir Starmer has announced that all UK residents will require a digital ID to prove their right to work in the country. The scheme will come into effect by the end of this current Parliament as part of a digital gov. uk wallet. Promoted as “making it easier for people across the UK to use vital government services”, including helping renters prove their identity to landlords, improving access to benefits, and making it easier to apply for free childcare, the practicality of this scheme cannot be ignored. 93% of UK adults own a smartphone, providing a more accessible approach to identification compared to passports and driver's licenses.
Estonia is considered the gold standard by the UK government for digital ID, with most Estonian citizens holding a digital ID that can be used to vote, register births, and file taxes. Similarly, the EU is expected to launch the Digital Identity (eID) wallet, enabling all EU citizens to access online and offline public and private services. There lies a more cynical aspect to the scheme, however – typically hidden in the fine print, beneath the aforementioned universally attractive promises.
The prospect of work is one of the driving factors for small boat crossings into the UK, and Starmer’s promise that “you will not be able to work in the United Kingdom if you do not have a digital ID” sends a clear message that illegal entry into the UK will result in the inability to work. Alongside the rollout of digital IDs, all companies will be prevented from using National Insurance numbers as a means of identification. Currently, it is easy to borrow, steal, or share National Insurance numbers to fake the right to work in the UK.
Photograph identification can, in theory, prevent any abuse of this system. This theoretical deterrence of illegal migration allows Labour to further pander to its alienated right-wing supporters, as Reform UK – notorious for its tough stance against immigration – climbs the approval polls. However, the scheme has so far drawn criticism from almost all of Labour’s political opponents, regardless of their opinions on immigration.
Leader of the Opposition Kemi Badenoch quipped on X, "Can we really trust [Labour] to implement an expensive national programme that will impact all of our lives and put additional burdens on law-abiding people? I doubt it.” Nigel Farage, Leader of Reform UK, also commented on X, “I am firmly opposed to @Keir_Starmer’s digital ID cards. It will make no difference to illegal immigration, but it will be used to control and penalise the rest of us.
The state should never have this much power.” Such a proposal is not new for the Labour government. Indeed, former Prime Minister Tony Blair legislated for voluntary ID cards during his tenure in the early 2000’s, but the scheme was quickly scrapped by the Conservative-led coalition government due to privacy concerns. It is worth noting that the new digital IDs will only be mandatory for UK workers; students, pensioners, and other non-working UK residents are not required to participate in the scheme.
Many civil liberties groups, however, still argue that this system could set the scene for more invasive identification in the future. Public support for the scheme has dwindled greatly in the past few months, with net support dropping from 35% in June 2025 to -14% since Starmer’s announcement. A petition opposing the scheme has garnered over two million signatures, describing any national ID system as a “step towards mass surveillance and digital control”.
A decision on whether or not Parliament will debate this petition will be announced by October 14.