CAMPAIGN WIN: Rachel Gilmour MP welcomes Government U-turn on mandatory digital ID
Earlier this week (Tuesday 13th January), it was widely reported that the Government had scrapped its plans to introduce mandatory digital ID for right-to-work checks, following public and political opposition.
A digital ID ‘Britcard’ will now be optional, to check an individual’s right to work in the UK from 2029.
Earlier this month, Rachel Gilmour MP slammed the Government after a letter was sent from Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones MP to ministers in December, asking for savings to be made in order to fund their digital ID plans. This was following projections from Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) that the digital ID scheme would cost around £1.8 billion over the course of three years.
The OBR previously stated that “no specific savings” had been identified to fund the digital ID scheme.
Speaking this morning, Rachel Gilmour MP said:
“And just like that… another U-turn from this Government – that’s 13 now!
I am delighted that the Government has finally come to its senses and changed course by backing down from its problematic and illiberal mandatory digital ID plans. This is another campaign win!
Since the initial announcement, I have made my stance absolutely clear – the Government should focus its efforts on actually improving the lives of people across the UK, not to mention my concerns around our civil liberties and provision for those who are digitally excluded.”
However, Mrs Gilmour said that she still had concerns about the cost of an optional digital ID rollout:
This is definitely welcome news, but an optional digital ID system would still be very expensive to implement. The Government should now consider scrapping this project entirely and investing in our public services instead.”
