More than 1.6 million people have signed a petition opposing the introduction of digital ID cards after Keir Starmer announced plans to make them mandatory for people working in the UK by 2029.
The petition says “no one should be forced to register with a state-controlled ID system”, which it describes as a “step towards mass surveillance and digital control”.
Petitions that receive more than 100,000 signatures are considered for a debate in parliament, but there is little evidence of their success in shaping government policy. More than 6 million people signed one calling for Brexit to be reversed.
Digital ID cards presented “an enormous opportunity” for the UK, Starmer said on Friday, as the government grappled with a civil liberties row over the proposals.
“I know working people are worried about the level of illegal migration into this country,” the prime minister said. “A secure border and controlled migration are reasonable demands, and this government is listening and delivering.
“Digital ID is an enormous opportunity for the UK. It will make it tougher to work illegally in this country, making our borders more secure.”
He argued that the “Brit card” would offer ordinary citizens “countless benefits, like being able to prove your identity to access key services swiftly – rather than hunting around for an old utility bill”.
Civil liberties groups have raised concerns over the proposals, with Silkie Carlo, the director of Big Brother Watch, warning the system would “make Britain less free” and create “a domestic mass surveillance infrastructure that will likely sprawl from citizenship to benefits, tax, health, possibly even internet data and more”.
She added: “Incredibly sensitive information about each and every one of us would be hoarded by the state and vulnerable to cyber-attacks.”
Addressing concerns over the government’s use of digital IDs, the culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, said ministers had “no intention of pursuing a dystopian mess”.
The Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, said her party would oppose any push by the government “to impose mandatory ID cards on law-abiding citizens”.
The Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage, also criticised the scheme, which he described as “an anti-British card”.
Writing in the Daily Express, he said: “The Labour government’s plan to impose digital ID cards on all adults will do nothing to combat illegal immigration. But it will give the state more power to control the British people.”
