Thousands marched through London on October 18 to protest the United Kingdom Government’s plan to introduce a mandatory digital ID for all citizens by 2029.
Protesters marched from Marble Arch to Whitehall, chanting and waving banners. Amongst the slogans were placards reading “a digital prison is being built around you,” “digital ID, no freedom, no privacy,” and “if you accept digital ID today, you’ve accepted social credit tomorrow.”
Former Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen, who was expelled from the Party in 2023 for comparing COVID-19 vaccines to the Holocaust, walked at the front of the march.
The Metropolitan Police imposed strict conditions on the protest to ensure disruption was kept to a minimum, but in the end, the march passed peacefully with no arrests or incidents reported.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced the planned mandatory digital ID on September 26 as a way to combat illegal immigration. The government said the ID would be held on people’s phones, but that there “will be no requirement for individuals to carry their ID or be asked to produce it.”
In addition to combating illegal immigration, the government said the digital ID rollout would “in time make it simpler to apply for services like driving licences, childcare and welfare, while streamlining access to tax records.”
According to reports, the digital ID will include a name, date of birth, nationality or residency status, and a photo. The government also said it would “take the best aspects” of digital ID systems from Australia, Estonia, Denmark, and India, citing access to private services, child benefits, health, and education records.
The announcement met with substantial opposition and skepticism, with the Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Helen Whately, saying that the Conservative Party “opposes” the introduction of mandatory ID.
“We don’t want to become a country where people are stopped in the street and asked to show their ID,” said Whately.
Meanwhile, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch dismissed the plans as a “gimmick that will do nothing to stop the boats.”
The organizers of Saturday’s protest, ‘Mass non-compliance,’ state on their website that: “We are at the brink. Fear and propaganda are the sales pitch. Digital ID is the product. It is marketed as safety but built for control. The people still have a voice and a choice. Use them. If you accept digital ID now, it may be the last real choice you ever make.”
The organization added that “we must make our refusal public: hundreds of thousands of people standing together will show that this system only works if we accept it.”
As well as the thousands that marched on Saturday, since Starmer’s announcement of the plan, a petition on the Government website, titled “Do not introduce Digital ID cards,” has gained over 2.9 million signatures. Parliament must consider all petitions that get more than 100,000 signatures for a debate, and the government responds to petitions with more than 10,000 signatures.
In response to the petition, the Government Department for Science, Innovation and Technology released a statement on October 2, reaffirming its commitment to the plan.
“We will introduce a digital ID within this Parliament to help tackle illegal migration, make accessing government services easier, and enable wider efficiencies,” said the Government.
However, in an attempt to assuage some of the doubters, it did also note: “For clarity, 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.’”
The Government added that “we will launch a public consultation in the coming weeks and work closely with employers, trade unions, civil society groups and other stakeholders, to co-design the scheme and ensure it is as secure and inclusive as possible.”
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Source: https://coingeek.com/thousands-protest-in-london-over-uk-plans-for-digital-id/