Bradley Slams Digital ID Launch Fiasco — Uk Digital Id Committee Report
The uk digital id committee report says the government’s launch of compulsory digital ID plans for all British adults last year was nothing short of a fiasco. Dame Karen Bradley said the early attempts to set out the policy were so badly handled that public confidence took a hit before the scheme was rewritten.
Dame Karen Bradley’s critique
Bradley said the government was right to introduce digital ID but had botched the launch. She said, “The government's early attempts to set out its plans for digital ID were nothing short of a fiasco.”
She also said, “To the public this announcement came out of the blue and made little sense.”
And she added, “It raised fears of government over-reach into people's lives and was so poorly thought out that they had few answers to ease these concerns.”
Starmer drops mandatory Britcard
Sir Keir Starmer announced in September last year that he wanted compulsory digital ID for workers. He reversed that plan three months later after a major public backlash.
The government had said a digital Britcard would be mandatory and would help tackle illegal working. By January, the mandatory element had been abandoned, and in March the plan returned as a voluntary scheme.
Voluntary app and March consultation
The government is still pressing ahead with digital identification for people who want it. The app will sit on smartphones and include residency status, name, date of birth, nationality and a photo.
It can be used to verify age and a person's right to live and work in the UK. In March, Cabinet Office minister Darren Jones launched an eight-week consultation and set up a people's panel with 100 individuals from across the country.
Bradley called the consultation starting after the relaunch “back to front.” The pressure on the plan did not come only from Westminster: political opponents and civil liberties campaigners raised privacy concerns, and a UK Parliament petition opposing digital IDs quickly picked up three million signatures.
For workers and other adults watching the policy shift, the practical change is that the state is no longer pushing a compulsory card scheme. The remaining question is how the voluntary app will work in practice once the consultation runs its course.
