Many British people breathed a sigh of relief when Labour was elected in July 2024, thinking it was the end of Conservative austerity and party re-shuffling.
However, in the past year the Labour party have introduced bills and legislation that has been incredibly unpopular.
The announcement of mandatory [M(1] digital IDs has caused widespread criticism of the Labour Party and its increasing anti-immigration sentiment.
Many British people are scared that their rights under democracy are being eroded away, and not even subtly.
A petition was released on Westminster’s official website against the rollout of the digital IDs that received almost three million signatures, the government response was as follows:
The government defends their bill proposal by stating that the digital IDs will improve access to public services by making it much easier to prove your identity and reducing identity fraud by minimising identity details the public gives out. It will also streamline verification processes across private sectors and toughen employment checks.
The Scottish Greens have responded in saying that the proposed digital ID cards are “intrusive and unwanted”, saying that,
the British government will waste millions of taxpayer money to fund a scheme that was not in their manifesto when they were elected.
The British charity, Big Brother Watch, named after George Orwell’s polemic about authoritarianism, has warned that the IDs pose a serious risk to security, equality, and the right to privacy.
The charity warns that the proposed IDs are a slippery slope to a social credit system that can be used to name and shame those who do not conform to British government’s ideals.
Big Brother‘s ‘No2Digital ID’s Campaign said:
“At their worst, digital ID systems can enable population-wide surveillance, curb liberties, predict and shape people’s decisions, or be abused for the tracking and targeting of marginalised groups.
“There is little evidence to prove that a digital ID system would deter illegal immigration or employment fraud. It would instead burden law-abiding citizens and businesses”.
The full report can be read here.
The Digital ID system is already used in China imposed by the Chinese Communist Party to limit access to certain services.
People who are deemed ‘untrustworthy’ are banned from purchasing train tickets and other purchases like them.
This leaves people like journalists who criticise the state unable to leave the area where they live. Many authoritarian watchdogs fear that this is the direction the UK will head if digital IDs are imposed.
Moreover, the Digital ID cards come at a time when the British public are losing trust in the Labour government, with cuts to benefits and proscribing Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation their popularity is plummeting across the UK.
Whether you are a loyal Labour member or a sceptic of what they are becoming, the announcement of digital IDs has been so poorly received it is hard to believe the Labour party will keep their seats in the next election.
Featured Image: Adobe Stock
Image 1: Big Brother Campaign Poster