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Britain to introduce compulsory digital ID for workers

(www.reuters.com)
525 points alex77456 | 5 comments | 26 Sep 25 02:09 UTC | HN request time: 0.781s | source
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andyjohnson0 ◴[26 Sep 25 06:26 UTC] No.45383356[source]▶
I didn't watch the video, but have read other reports, and it's worth noting that the context for this is the Labour Party conference, which starts on Sunday. The UK govt are under pressure from the tories and Reform to do something about people entering the UK from France by crossing the channel in small boats. Nothing much seems to be working. So this announcement is about trying to control the narrative by making a big, distracting announcement. I'd mlbe surprised if many people in the government/police/civil service expect it to make a difference.

Also, seems to be intended to be mandatory and require a smartphone. Hows that going to work?

Also, what happens when the database is inevitably stolen?

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rich_sasha ◴[26 Sep 25 06:49 UTC] No.45383503[source]▶
The small boats crossing are a small fraction of immigration. Some Google number claims 37k people got in this way in 2024. With net migration hovering around 0.8-1m people per year, arrivals must be well above this number (surely some people are leaving, making the net number smaller). But even then, this is less than 5% of the legal immigration, and probably a lot less than that.

I'm not saying it doesn't need addressing or isn't serious, but I think it's a convenient topic for politicians. It's a lot more media-friendly than the arrivals queue at Luton Airport. And the illegal immigrants aren't the ones putting pressure on NHS, housing market or train driver unions.

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1. TheChaplain ◴[26 Sep 25 07:24 UTC] No.45383765[source]▶
Uhm are you sure about those numbers?

0.8m is like on the average a whole county in the UK, and such massive influx would destroy the housing- and job market. Not to mention pressure on schools and healthcare.

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2. keanb ◴[26 Sep 25 07:53 UTC] No.45383930[source]▶
What do you think is happening to those markets?
3. anal_reactor ◴[26 Sep 25 08:04 UTC] No.45383987[source]▶
The actual number is like half of that because while 800k people came, about 400k people left.

I am an immigrant myself but I start to think that such policies are short-sighted. The end result is often fragmentation of the society, because immigrants rarely truly integrate, and at some point they become the majority, and then you're effectively a minority in your own country. It takes at least two generations for newcomers to become fully integrated, and that assumes things going right.

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4. rich_sasha ◴[26 Sep 25 08:28 UTC] No.45384154[source]▶
Exactly, this is what I am saying. The 0.8-1m number is the legal, net migration into the UK, very significant, and adding to the downsides people associate with immigration. It's not all downsides etc etc but still.

The 37k small boats migration is very small in comparison. Plus there's illegal immigration not via small boats - overstayed visas etc.

Hence my point that the overfocus on small boats crossings seems misplaced to me.

5. rich_sasha ◴[26 Sep 25 12:20 UTC] No.45385660[source]▶
The migration numbers are net so I believe this is arrivals minus departures (or someone has a very weird definition of net).