Keir Starmer U-Turns On Mandatory ID Cards After Backlash

The Prime Minister has abandoned plans for mandatory ID cards to verify your right to work in the UK – after pretty much everyone and their mothers revolted against the idea.

The ID cards will now be optional when they are introduced in 2029, so you will still have the choice to verify your identity using other documents instead. An ultra rare Keir Starmer W!

A Labour source told The Times that the ‘mandatory’ element ‘was stopping conversation about what digital IDs could be used for generally’.

They said: ‘Stepping back from mandatory-use cases will deflate one of the main points of contention. We do not want to risk there being cases of some 65-year-old in a rural area being barred from working because he hasn’t installed the ID.’

Well, now that it’s purely voluntary, I don’t think anyone can have a problem with it. That said, we must not forget that the digital architecture is still in place, which could eventually allow the commoditisation of all our data, and the ability to mass track people’s activities.

The opposing argument is that as we head into the future, digital ID will be fundamental for the British government to run efficiently. Many other countries have digital ID already, and apparently it’s a benefit to the economy, with reduced fraud, more efficient service delivery and such.

However, the upfront/implementation costs are sky high, and it seems that for most people, the privacy concerns outweigh the benefits.

At the end of the day, the government’s been running for decades without mandatory digital ID already. I’m sure we’ll cope without it fine for years to come.

For what it’s worth, Keir Starmer had assured that there’s ‘absolutely no way’ digital ID will track Brits’ lives. Guess we would have had to take his word for it?