Britain is set for a major shake-up as Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a mandatory digital identity scheme for anyone wishing to work in the UK.
Speaking at the Global Progressive Action Conference in London, Starmer declared: “Let me spell it out: you will not be able to work in the United Kingdom if you do not have digital ID.”
The prime minister argued the move will clamp down on illegal working and streamline access to essential services, making it easier for citizens to prove who they are without relying on passports, driving licences, or old utility bills.
“Digital ID is an enormous opportunity for the UK. It will make our borders more secure and give ordinary people countless benefits,” he said.
But the proposal has triggered fierce resistance. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch vowed her party would never support mandatory ID for British citizens, while Reform UK’s Nigel Farage dismissed the scheme as “pure state control” with “not a single benefit” for the public.
With polls suggesting Reform could form the next government, Starmer framed the policy as a defining election battleground: an “open fight” between Labour and Reform UK over identity, security, and freedom.
