Opposition parties have labeled this the Labour government’s 13th major U-turn since taking office in 2024, though exact counts vary.
The policy shift means workers will no longer be required to register with a government-issued digital ID system to prove their right to work. Instead, they can choose from multiple verification methods, including biometric passports, electronic visas, or commercial digital verification apps.
The Rise and Fall of the “BritCard”
Prime Minister Starmer announced the digital ID scheme on September 26, 2025, at the Global Progress Action Summit in London. The plan, nicknamed the “BritCard,” would have required all workers to hold a government-issued digital credential stored on their smartphones.
“Let me spell it out, you will not be able to work in the United Kingdom if you do not have digital ID,” Starmer declared at the announcement. The government framed the policy as a way to combat illegal immigration and prevent migrants from working in the “shadow economy.”
The digital ID would have included personal details such as name, date of birth, nationality or residency status, and a photo. It was designed to work through the Gov.uk Wallet app, which would also store digital driving licenses. The government claimed the system would be privacy-focused with no centralized database.
Source: @RupertLowe10
However, public support collapsed rapidly after the announcement. According to polling by More in Common, net support for mandatory digital IDs plummeted from +35% in early summer 2025 to -14% by late September. By October, only 31% of Britons supported the plan, down from 53% in June.
Historic Public Opposition
A parliamentary petition against mandatory digital ID cards gathered 2.9 million signatures, making it one of the largest petitions in UK parliamentary history. Opposition came from across the political spectrum, including Conservative, Liberal Democrat, Reform UK, Scottish National Party, and Sinn Féin leaders.
Civil liberties groups strongly criticized the proposal. Big Brother Watch described the plans as “wholly unBritish” and warned they would create a “domestic mass surveillance infrastructure.” Even Labour backbenchers publicly opposed the scheme, with Labour MP Rebecca Long Bailey expressing concerns about “building an infrastructure that can follow us, link our most sensitive information and expand state control over all our lives.”
Cabinet ministers reportedly described the digital ID plan as “incoherent,” “a fantasy,” and “too expensive and complicated.” One frontbencher called the eventual U-turn a disaster, reflecting deep frustration within Starmer’s own government.
What the Policy Change Means
On January 13-14, 2026, the Cabinet Office confirmed that digital ID would become optional rather than mandatory. A government spokesperson stated: “We are committed to mandatory digital right to work checks. Currently, right to work checks include a hodgepodge of paper-based systems with no record of checks ever taking place. This is open to fraud and abuse.”
The key distinction is that while employers must still conduct digital right-to-work checks by 2029, workers are not forced to use a specific government-issued digital ID. They can verify their employment eligibility through electronic visas, biometric passports, or certified commercial digital verification services.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves told BBC Breakfast the government is “pretty relaxed” about what form of digital documentation people use to prove their right to work. Transport Secretary officials confirmed that while mandatory digital checks remain the goal, these do not necessarily require the government’s digital ID system.
The government plans to launch a public consultation shortly to determine the final details of the digital verification system. Implementation is still targeted for 2029, by the end of the current parliamentary term.
Political Fallout and Criticism
Opposition parties seized on the reversal as evidence of government weakness. Conservative Shadow Cabinet Office Minister Mike Wood stated: “Keir Starmer’s spinelessness is becoming a pattern, not an exception. What was sold as a tough measure to tackle illegal working is now set to become yet another costly, ill-thought-out experiment abandoned at the first sign of pressure.”
Liberal Democrat Cabinet Office spokesperson Lisa Smart said: “Number 10 must be bulk ordering motion sickness tablets at this rate to cope with all their U-turns. It was clear right from the start this was a proposal doomed to failure.”
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage called the abandonment of mandatory digital ID “a victory for individual liberty against a ghastly, authoritarian government,” though he added that Reform UK would scrap the entire scheme if in power.
Civil liberties advocates welcomed the change. Big Brother Watch Director Silkie Carlo praised Starmer’s reported U-turn on “intrusive, expensive and unnecessary digital IDs.”
Context and Future Implications
The UK government has a troubled history with digital ID systems. The previous Gov.uk Verify platform, launched in 2013, cost over £220 million and failed to meet user adoption targets before being officially shut down. The government has not provided cost estimates for the current digital ID initiative, though the Office for Budget Responsibility has indicated the scheme would require £1.8 billion over three years, to be funded from existing departmental budgets.
Under current UK law, employers can face fines up to £45,000 for hiring unauthorized workers without proper status checks. The Border Security Act 2025 increased penalties to £60,000 per worker for some violations. The government reports that illegal working arrests have increased 50% under the current administration.
The digital ID scheme would have built on existing government infrastructure, including Gov.uk One Login (which already has 12 million users) and the Gov.uk Wallet app announced in January 2025. The government cited Estonia’s successful digital ID system as inspiration for the UK model.
Josh Simons, a Cabinet Office minister, has been appointed to lead the development of the revised digital identity program and will oversee the upcoming public consultation.
The Bottom Line
The UK’s digital ID reversal demonstrates how quickly public opinion can force policy changes in democratic systems. What began as a flagship immigration enforcement measure ended as an optional convenience feature after facing opposition from nearly 3 million petition signers, opposition parties, civil liberties groups, and even members of the governing Labour Party. While digital right-to-work checks will still become mandatory by 2029, British workers will maintain the freedom to choose how they verify their employment eligibility rather than being forced into a single government-controlled system.