Overview

• Under the plan, employers and landlords would verify a person’s right to live and work via a smartphone app checked against a central government database, with non‑smartphone options promised.
• The government says the digital ID will be the mandatory proof for employment, with the prime minister declaring that people without it will not be able to work in the UK.
• Officials aim to make IDs available to citizens and legal residents by the end of this Parliament, with a public consultation to launch later this year.
• Conservatives, Reform UK and Liberal Democrat figures criticised the proposal on civil liberties and effectiveness grounds, and eight rights groups warned it could drive unauthorised migrants further into the shadows.
• Public reaction intensified with petitions opposing digital ID passing 1.5 million signatures in one report, while earlier polling suggested majority support for a universal system and cost estimates vary widely across think‑tanks.