Andy Burnham is scrapping the Labour government’s digital ID scheme as one of his first acts as prime minister.
The policy was never included in Labour’s 2024 manifesto. Despite this, Keir Starmer announced it last September as a tool to combat illegal migration, following strong encouragement from Tony Blair and former Conservative leader William Hague.
Blair has been the persistent driving force behind this undemocratic push for two decades.
As prime minister he tried to introduce national ID cards through the Identity Cards Act 2006. Billions were spent before the scheme was abandoned in 2010. His Tony Blair Institute then continued lobbying heavily for digital ID, publishing reports and recommendations that helped shape the Starmer government’s plans.
The public response was overwhelming. Nearly three million people signed a petition opposing the scheme, while a four hour parliamentary debate saw MPs from across the political spectrum warn that it threatened privacy, civil liberties and the principle of public consent.
The government was eventually forced to drop the compulsory element for workers, but it continued trying to advance the broader digital ID infrastructure under a softer, rebranded model.
That disregard for manifesto commitments, parliamentary concern and enormous public resistance was deeply troubling.
Burnham is now ending the programme, with hundreds of millions of pounds in projected annual costs redirected towards cost-of-living support rather than another expensive, centralised state project.
That money will not solve the cost-of-living crisis, and whether families feel any meaningful benefit remains to be seen. Even so, choosing immediate help for ordinary people over a controversial national identity system is a major and very welcome decision.
Tony Blair has pushed this idea relentlessly for years, despite repeated rejection from the public.
This is a victory, but I would not assume the battle is over.
Why do I suspect digital ID will return under another name?
The policy was never included in Labour’s 2024 manifesto. Despite this, Keir Starmer announced it last September as a tool to combat illegal migration, following strong encouragement from Tony Blair and former Conservative leader William Hague.
Blair has been the persistent driving force behind this undemocratic push for two decades.
As prime minister he tried to introduce national ID cards through the Identity Cards Act 2006. Billions were spent before the scheme was abandoned in 2010. His Tony Blair Institute then continued lobbying heavily for digital ID, publishing reports and recommendations that helped shape the Starmer government’s plans.
The public response was overwhelming. Nearly three million people signed a petition opposing the scheme, while a four hour parliamentary debate saw MPs from across the political spectrum warn that it threatened privacy, civil liberties and the principle of public consent.
The government was eventually forced to drop the compulsory element for workers, but it continued trying to advance the broader digital ID infrastructure under a softer, rebranded model.
That disregard for manifesto commitments, parliamentary concern and enormous public resistance was deeply troubling.
Burnham is now ending the programme, with hundreds of millions of pounds in projected annual costs redirected towards cost-of-living support rather than another expensive, centralised state project.
That money will not solve the cost-of-living crisis, and whether families feel any meaningful benefit remains to be seen. Even so, choosing immediate help for ordinary people over a controversial national identity system is a major and very welcome decision.
Tony Blair has pushed this idea relentlessly for years, despite repeated rejection from the public.
This is a victory, but I would not assume the battle is over.
Why do I suspect digital ID will return under another name?
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