"It was continuity dressed as renewal: capital behind the wheel, social policy just along for the ride. Tellingly, Sir Keir invoked abundance the buzzword of American supply-side liberals and title of Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson's eponymous book. In Washington, it is the banner for centrists who pin prosperity on deregulation, rapid infrastructure rollout and market-led growth, with redistribution an afterthought."
"Sir Keir argues, the political flashpoint is illegal migration. He claimed it was too easy to slip into off-the-books work and stay. But migrants in Britain already live with digital proof of status: a nine-character share code handed to employers or landlords, who verify it against a Home Office database. Sir Keir now proposes to treat British citizens the same way. A universal digital ID, mandatory for the right to work, is presented as protection against a shadow economy and another Windrush scandal."
Labour faces falling authority, poor polls, and departures among lieutenants while attention shifts toward Manchester mayor leadership positioning. A centre-left speech presented continuity as renewal, prioritising capital while reframing 'abundance' as social democracy. Illegal migration was identified as the central flashpoint, with claims migrants can slip into off-the-books work. Migrants already use a nine-character share code verified against a Home Office database. A proposed universal digital ID, mandatory to work, is framed as protection against a shadow economy and Windrush-style failures. A consultation could add data, enabling a unified infrastructure linking health, welfare, housing, tax and migration records, creating a national data spine attractive to Big Tech and prompting fights over gender identity and police access.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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