UK’s Worrying Digital ID Plans

A major protest is set to take place in London on Saturday (October 18) against the UK government’s plan to introduce a digital ID for its citizens, under the guise of using it to stop illegal immigration.

That’s raised alarm about its implications for national security and civil liberties.

The Mass Non-Compliance campaign, which is spearheading the protest, has assembled a “fact vault” detailing its concerns about a digital ID.

It lists:

• The dangers stack: central points of failure (easy targets for hackers).
• Mission creep (from right-to-work checks to benefits, health records, and travel).
• Exclusion (those without smartphones or stable digital access left behind).
• Commercial capture (private firms getting monopoly control over public functions).

RISK OF ORWELLIAN DATABASE STATE IN WHICH SENSITIVE DATA CAN BE MINED

A report compiled by the advocacy organisation Big Brother Watch expressed concern that a “digital ID system designed with a single unique identifier that records every interaction with public services and private companies, risks creating an Orwellian database state in which our sensitive data can be mined for insights.”

“The calls for AI-enhanced digital ID that permits expansive profiling, surveillance and tracking in order to pre-empt behaviour and justify interventions, undermine democratic norms and fundamental rights.”

“Rather than empowering the citizen — at best, these types of digital ID systems help the state to administer itself,” the report maintains.

PETITION AGAINST DIGITAL ID HAS NEARLY 3 MILLION SIGNATURES

A petition before the UK Parliament titled “Do not introduce digital ID cards” has accumulated nearly 2.9 million signatures.

“We think this would be a step towards mass surveillance and digital control, and that no one should be forced to register with a state-controlled ID system,” the petition states.

The government has responded to the petition, reiterating its assurance that digital IDs will benefit Britons by reducing bureaucracy and illegal immigration.

It announced plans last month to institute a free digital ID for UK citizens, claiming it would block the employment of illegal migrants by enhancing Right to Work checks.

GOVT ARGUES DIGITAL ID WOULD CURB ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has claimed the digital ID initiative is necessary to combat the illegal immigration that has been plaguing Britain.

Over 43,600 migrants have arrived in the UK by small boats this year.

A record 111,084 asylum applications were filed in the second quarter of the year.

GOVT’S DEFENCE OF THE DIGITAL ID

The government insisted that “It will not be compulsory to obtain a digital ID, but it will be mandatory for some applications.”

“It will not be a criminal offence to not hold a digital ID and police will not be able to demand to see a digital ID as part of a ‘stop and search.’” it added.

“Privacy and security will also be central to the digital ID program.”

“We will follow data protection law and best practice in creating a system which people can rightly put their trust in,” the government vowed.

“People in the U.K. already know and trust digital credentials held in their phone wallets to use in their everyday lives, from paying for things to storing boarding passes.”

PRIME MINISTER DEFENDS DIGITAL ID

“I know working people are worried about the level of illegal migration into this country,” conceded Prime Minister Starmer.

“A secure border and controlled migration are reasonable demands, and this government is listening and delivering.”

“Digital ID is an enormous opportunity for the UK.”

“It will make it tougher to work illegally in this country, making our borders more secure.”

“And it will also offer ordinary citizens countless benefits, like being able to prove your identity to access key services swiftly, rather than hunting around for an old utility bill,” Sir Keir added.

HOW DIGITAL ID WILL STOP ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FROM WORKING

His Labour government has indicated that digital ID will be mandatory for Right to Work checks by the end of the current session of Parliament.

“This will stop those with no right to be here from being able to find work, curbing their prospect of earning money, one of the key ‘pull factors’ for people who come to the U.K. illegally,” said a government press release.

“It will send a clear message that if you come here illegally, you will not be able to work, deterring people from making these dangerous journeys.”

PODCASTER CLAIMS DIGITAL ID IS A CON

Co-host of the Triggernometry podcast, Konstantin Kisin pushed back on the idea that a digital ID would help stop illegal immigration:

“We know that there’s up to a million illegal immigrants in the country, and the government knows who many, if not most, of them are.”

“Not least because a lot of them are staying in hotels and private rentals that we’re all paying for as taxpayers.”

“So, we know exactly who they are and yet, they’re still here. They’re not being removed, and more are coming every day.”

“So, the reason we have an illegal immigration problem is not that we can’t identify them.”

“It’s that we’re not removing them. The government is lying to you.”

WHY THE UK GOVERNMENT CANNOT BE TRUSTED

The podcaster gave examples of why he believes the government cannot be trusted, regarding digital ID.

“We have a government that locks people up for tweets, shuts you in your home because there’s a bad flu going around, and thinks half the country is far right,’” he warned

“I do not want to give power to a government that has consistently proven itself not only untrustworthy, but authoritarian every time there’s been an opportunity for them to be authoritarian.”

The US State Department has warned that “the human rights situation worsened in the UK during the last year.”

It specifically highlighted “restrictions on political speech deemed ‘hateful’ or ‘offensive.’”

That included silent prayer near abortion clinics or even within one’s own home.