Overview

• Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed a nationwide digital ID to verify the right to work, framing it as a response to illegal migration and the shadow economy.
• The ID will live in a GOV.UK wallet app on smartphones, with non-digital alternatives promised for people who cannot use a phone.
• The government says it will be compulsory only for employment checks, with no requirement to carry the ID or submit to on-the-spot demands.
• Credentials will be checked against a central database; ministers have signaled checks at hiring and for new tenancies, subject to legislation and consultation.
• Officials say the service will be available to citizens and legal residents by the end of this Parliament, as civil-liberties groups and opposition parties mobilize large petitions and pledge resistance.