The government still has questions to answer on digital IDs

Ahead of the Labour Party Conference 2025, the prime minister announced a new digital ID scheme to help “combat illegal working” and to make it “easier for the vast majority of people to use vital government services”. ⁵⁰ https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-digital-id-scheme-to-be-rolled-out-across-uk  Since his announcement, the secretary of state for science, innovation and technology spoke in the House of Commons to outline more details, arguing that digital IDs were about “giving people power and control over their lives.” ⁵¹ https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2025-10-13/debates/37D3137B-302E-4E1B-A6E4-0676456F26D0/DigitalID#contribution-CA51C587-986C-4AAF-8E14-926ACCE6…   

The government has also released a GOV.UK ‘Digital ID scheme: explainer’, ⁵² https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/digital-id-scheme-explainer/digital-id-scheme-explainer  and moved overall responsibility for the scheme to the Cabinet Office. ⁵³ https://www.gov.uk/government/news/machinery-of-government-digital-id  But it has not published any detailed policy or strategy papers, and its consultation has been delayed to 2026. ⁵⁴ https://www.politicshome.com/news/article/public-consultation-digital-id-delayed  Here are six key questions the government needs to answer on digital IDs.  

1. How can the government make a better case for digital ID?

The prime minister’s September announcement did not land well and indeed was followed by a fall in public support for the scheme. ⁵⁵ https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/event/governments-digital-id-plan  So the government will need to rebuild support and persuade the public that the scheme will help them. At our recent panel event, Rachel Coldicutt from Careful Industries said that digital identity is “a little bit of an imaginary”. As it stands, it does not exist and so could do many things, or nothing at all: the government will need to push what it will do.

Part of this persuasion requires that it explains to people what this means for them, rather than what it means for government. People need to believe that the government is genuinely looking to help them with the scheme, something which the initial framing of the policy – largely presented as a way to reduce illegal working – will have made harder.  

This is possible, if the government makes sure that in all its next steps, it shows it is listening to people’s concerns – and creating a picture of something that people see themselves using.

2. How does the government build safeguards into legislation?

Our panel also discussed the risk of future governments misusing a digital ID system – deploying it as a surveillance tool, for instance. ⁵⁶ https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/event/governments-digital-id-plan  Research on digital identity has also shown that people from minority ethnic backgrounds have greater concerns about the potential of digital ID to exclude and discriminate. ⁵⁷ https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5dc968e72502ee46b88c1a4a/t/66eaa6bd544a5622d2f8cf37/1726654168404/rachel-coldicutt-obe-2024-digital-identity-i…  

No government can bind its successors. But the Starmer government can minimise any risks of misuse while the eventual act is in effect. For example, the legislation can be specific about the purpose of digital ID and the requirements for amending it, preventing it being altered through guidance or secondary legislation.

3. How can the government include the ‘digitally excluded’?

The Digital Poverty Alliance estimated in 2023 that 13-19 million people aged 16+ in the UK were in ‘digital poverty’. ⁵⁸ https://digitalpovertyalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Deloitte-Digital-Poverty_FinalReport_29092023.pdf  The government’s own digital inclusion action plan reported that 1.6 million people in the UK are living offline. ⁵⁹ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/digital-inclusion-action-plan-first-steps/digital-inclusion-action-plan-first-steps#chapter-3---defining-a…  Any scheme designed to be used by most of the population needs to find solutions for reaching these groups too.

The government has said that it will “ensure there are alternative routes” for people who cannot use a smartphone and will consider “physical alternatives”. ⁶⁰ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/digital-id-scheme-explainer/digital-id-scheme-explainer#what-data-will-be-held  It will need to spend time scoping out what this alternative looks like, and set this out in full.

4. How can the government build the technology responsibly to manage data security risks?

Data security is one of the biggest concerns around digital IDs. During the Blair government’s attempt to introduce identity cards, the Identity Cards Act (2006) created a National Identity Register to store the information of people with the ID cards.x ⁶⁹ https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/15/pdfs/ukpga_20060015_en.pdf  But both were scrapped by the coalition government. ⁷⁰ https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/digital-id-cards

Modern technology means that identity information does not need to be stored in a centralised database. The secretary of state for science, innovation and technology appeared to rule a centralised database out, while the GOV.UK explainer states the scheme would use “state-of-the-art encryption and authentication technology” and that credentials would be “stored directly” on a person’s device. ⁷¹ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/digital-id-scheme-explainer/digital-id-scheme-explainer#what-data-will-be-held

But in our panel, Rachel Coldicutt pointed out that any system that disaggregates information needs a “really clear governance system”. Matthew Feeney from Big Brother Watch also explained that he could not see a scenario where government would not have a “bird’s eye view” of the data, otherwise it would not be effective. Any digital ID scheme requires trust to work, which will need government to be transparent about how the underlying systems will minimise (inevitable) vulnerabilities.

Watch our event on the government's digital ID plan

5. How will digital ID relate to existing identity verification projects in government?

There are two major identity initiatives in government: GOV.UK OneLogin and eVisa. OneLogin, a programme run by the Government Digital Service (GDS), allows members of the public to use the same email and password to access government services, after their identity has been verified. ⁷² https://www.sign-in.service.gov.uk/about  The Home Office’s eVisa is a new digital service replacing physical residence permits. ⁷³ https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-10097/  It provides a digital record of a person’s immigration status (including people with indefinite leave to remain) and the conditions attached to it. ⁷⁴ https://www.gov.uk/evisa

Both suggest the government already has or is developing the infrastructure to make it easier for the public to access digital services – in the eVisa’s case this can be used for checks carried out by employers and landlords. ⁷⁵ https://homeofficemedia.blog.gov.uk/2024/12/04/media-factsheet-evisas-2/  They also show that there is extensive expertise already in government. Government will need to clarify the implications for these initiatives: will they come together, for instance, or remain separate?

6. What will digital IDs mean for digital verification services provided by private companies?

There is a large digital verification sector in the UK – it generated £2.1bn annual revenue in 2023/24. ⁷⁶ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/digital-identity-sectoral-analysis-report-2025/digital-identity-sectoral-analysis-2025#executive-summary  This industry has been supported by successive governments including this one, in the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025.  

In our panel, Morgan Wild from LabourTogether argued that the government should have a “strong role” in providing a single identity; it already issues national insurance numbers and passports. But there was no pre-existing market for either of those when they were introduced. Government should assess what the impact will be on the industry, and whether they want government-issued digital IDs to coexist with private digital verification services.  

The prime minister made much of digital IDs when he introduced the plan in September. His government has much to do to make sure the scheme is viable, practical and, importantly, properly understood by the public.