Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced plans to introduce the ‘Britcard’, in an attempt to reduce asylum workers from working illegally.
One major concern was around a centralised data system, unable to trust the government with the handling of a nation’s sensitive information.
Accessibility is also a pain point among the public, with scheme will increase convenience for those who have it, holders can pay taxes and utility bills and verify their right to work. Access to national services such as the NHS would also become simpler.
However, the news has been met with national backlash, with many calling it ‘authoritarian’ and even ‘communist’.
A petition protesting the idea has already reached 2.8 million signatures.
D’andre Greyson, an accounting and finance student, said he “wasn’t surprised” by the news.
He told The River: “When you look back on Covid, and they had the passports, I always saw it as a testing phrase. This digital ID, I think, is clearly being used for control of us.”
Economic students Sebastian Saidin is also critical on a newly implemented digital ID system.
“They say it’s to tackle immigration, but with passport measures already in place, I don’t see how a digital system is needed to deter immigration. All I can see is this system being exploited,” he said.
Many fearing those on a lower income and older citizens would be punished.
And while alternatives have been promised for those with disabilities including, voice commands and screen readers; other parties have been ignored; including those on a lower income and onlookers are doubtful.
However, not every Kingston University student is against the new ‘Britcard’ system.
A photography student who did not want to be named said: “I’m not too opposed to digital ID. I’ve seen it applied in other countries, it’s more on how this government will manage it.”
“As Starmer describes it, on its own isn’t inherently bad; it’s the potential to use it as a tool to control that scares me.”
This is not the first time a national ID system has been rolled out under the supervision of the Labour party.
During his time in office, ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair passed the Identity Cards Act 2006, which created physical national identification cards. It was passed in response to fears over terrorism and identity fraud.
This was met with heavy criticism and national backlash and labelled as ‘clear government overreach’. It was later repealed in 2011 by David Cameron’s Conservative government.
The announcement comes just months after the Online Safety Act was put into effect, a move which has been criticised as the government interfering with private life.
Greyson expressed this distrust in the government’s moves. “Even the Online Safety Act which was rolled out earlier, where [politicians] want us to entrust our information into overseas databases? You can’t tell me this isn’t an authoritarian government,” he said. The UK Online Safety Act was introduced earlier in July and required users to enter their information into age verification systems, to mitigate children from accessing harmful content across the internet, such as pornography, self-harming content and gambling.
