Party to launch eight-week consultation in last ditch attempt to garner public support for policy
Daily Telegraph 10/03/26
Labour is setting up a “people’s panel” on digital ID in a last-ditch attempt to turn public opinion in favour of the policy.
Ministers have started an eight-week consultation on plans to create a new digital ID for government services, which were watered down after a rebellion of Labour MPs.
Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, has pledged to create a system of “Government by app” and compared the service to the introduction of online banking.
Ministers will also run a “people’s panel” on the policy, which the Government said would “bring together people across the country from different backgrounds” to have “in-depth discussions” and find “ways to move forward”.
The panel will be formed of 100 randomly selected people from across the country in an attempt to secure public support for the policy after months of criticism.
Polling shows that while the public tended to support the idea last summer, digital ID became far less popular when Sir Keir Starmer announced it as a government policy in October.
The largest group of people now say they either oppose or strongly oppose its introduction, according to YouGov, whereas a majority of the public supported it in June last year.
The original plans, backed by Sir Tony Blair, the former prime minister, included a mandatory digital ID that citizens would be forced to download to prove their right to work in the UK.
There was also widespread confusion about whether benefit recipients, NHS patients and other users of government services would be required to use the government app, raising concerns about digital exclusion of the elderly.
But Sir Keir has now abandoned the compulsory element of the plans, with officials stressing that a passport or eVisa can still be used to prove a person’s right to work in the UK.
Announcing the consultation on Monday, the Cabinet Office confirmed that anyone starting a new job “will be able” to use the new digital proof of identity for digital right-to-work checks, which will be required by the end of the current Parliament.
As part of the consultation, citizens will answer questions including on what age they believe people should be able to get a digital ID, after ministers indicated children as young as 13 could be included in the rollout.
People will also be asked what information it would be useful to include – such as proof of address as well as identity – and what government services it could improve, such as getting a driving licence or checking tax codes.
Officials said the prototype of the scheme would show how a system of “Government by app” would work with digital ID as its foundation, with ambitions to make this set-up as easy and secure as online banking.
Mr Jones said the Government “will not leave people behind” and will offer support to members of the public who are “less confident” in using computers.
He pointed to figures showing that one in seven people do not have a passport – a group he said were often “strivers juggling work and care responsibilities”.
Mr Jones added: “People too often dread their interactions with public services. Endless telephone calls, complicated printed forms and having to tell your story multiple times to different parts of government.
“I want to change that and make public services work for you. The new digital ID will make that possible, allowing you to log on and prove who you are to access public services more quickly, easily and securely.
“Supermarkets, banks and shops have all chosen to move their services online because it delivers a better customer experience and value for money, and other countries like Estonia fully digitised public services years ago. We need to catch up.
“We’re launching a public consultation to let you have your say about how we use digital ID to make public services work for you. We want to build a system that works for everyone. Now is your chance.”
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