"Civil service officials last week attempted to quell the second uproar of the year from private sector digital ID app providers in a behind-closed-doors meeting, while this week (Monday 13 October) new technology secretary Liz Kendall attempted to face down MPs from all parties in a House of Commons debate as they expressed their concerns and protestations at the plans."
"Kendall was correct when she told MPs: "There is a lot of misinformation out there about this proposal." But she did not acknowledge that any misinformation was largely a result of the government's poor communication around the original announcement. As fintech industry body Innovate Finance - a supporter of digital identity - put it: "The reaction, frankly, has been to focus on the worst-case scenario - 'compulsory digital ID' is being framed as an erosion of civil liberties, a gateway to mass surveillance, and a tool of digital exclusion. It's all fear and no finesse.""
Nearly three million people signed an online petition opposing the introduction of digital ID cards, prompting government efforts to regain control after prime minister Keir Starmer's problematic announcement of a mandatory national digital identity scheme. Civil service officials held closed-door meetings with private-sector digital ID app providers while technology secretary Liz Kendall faced cross-party MPs in the Commons. Claims of widespread misinformation grew amid poor government communication. Industry supporters warned of worst-case framing as erosion of civil liberties and exclusion. A Conservative peer criticised linking mandatory digital ID to immigration control. Insiders indicate the eventual scheme may be neither fully mandatory nor nationwide, with the announcement specifying mandatory proof of right to work via a government digital ID app, with limited exemptions.
Read at ComputerWeekly.com
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