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Britain to introduce compulsory digital ID for workers

(www.reuters.com)
525 points alex77456 | 3 comments | 26 Sep 25 02:09 UTC | HN request time: 0s | 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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arrowsmith ◴[26 Sep 25 06:35 UTC] No.45383425[source]▶
“Nothing much seems to be working” because the government is completely unserious about stopping the boats and is unwilling to do any of the things that might actually work.

They could stop them in a week if they actually wanted to.

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pbhjpbhj ◴[26 Sep 25 06:56 UTC] No.45383570[source]▶
Legally and morally? What is your solution?
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arrowsmith ◴[26 Sep 25 07:26 UTC] No.45383789[source]▶
Stick them in processing centres until they can be deported. Send a clear message to anyone who might come that it won't work, you won't get in, we won't give you anything, don't risk your life or waste your money.

Australia did exactly this (in the face of howling opposition) and it worked: illegal boat arrivals dropped from ~20,000 per year to almost zero. Thousands of people used to drown attempting the crossing, now no-one drowns. There's your moral case.

Legally, Parliament is sovereign. If the current legal framework doesn't allow it, change the law. Except they won't, because they don't want to solve the problem and they use the law as an excuse as if they aren't the fucking government.

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andyjohnson0 ◴[26 Sep 25 10:13 UTC] No.45384800[source]▶
I'm genuinely wondering how harsh you'd be willing to be to get what you want.

What would you do if an individual can't be deported because no country will accept them? Or if their country of origin is likely to kill or torture them? Or if no commercial carrier is willing to risk operating to that country? Would you be willing to deport unaccompanied children with no guarantee that they'd be cared for?

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1. diordiderot ◴[26 Sep 25 11:54 UTC] No.45385432[source]▶
This is a perniciously xenophobic take, tbh. Who are you to decide your values are objectively better than theirs? /s

There is a village A dragon comes to the village every year. In exchange for 2% of the children, it spares the rest and promises its “magical” protection from unseen enemies. This arrangement has lasted 2,000 years. Most villagers worship it, even though the custom has left their village far worse off than others in the land.

Some villagers move away. Not all of them are dragon-worshippers, but some are and they still try to summon the dragon.

Now the dragon free villagers face a choice:

Keep them out. But that means some innocent children among them will die.

Let them in. Risk the cult spreading again inside the walls and possibly bringing the dragon back.

Go kill the dragon themselves. Accept substantial casualties including innocent dragon worshippers and some of their own people.

Killing the dragon would mean temporarily brutal treatment of the worshippers and the destruction of their culture, but it would spare future generations from an unbounded amount of suffering.

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2. andyjohnson0 ◴[26 Sep 25 15:24 UTC] No.45387581[source]▶
I'm really not sure what point you're making here. What is the "dragon" in irregular migration. What is the "village"?
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3. diordiderot ◴[26 Sep 25 20:40 UTC] No.45390807[source]▶
It isn’t hard to parse. If you’re very literal minded, forget the mapping and just engage with the story on its own terms, then we can parse it.

Otherwise, I can only assume the trade offs are too uncomfortable (cognitive dissonance, you're a gentle soul!) or it’s a bad-faith feint to shift the burden while posing as “too rational” to engage.

No analogy is perfect. The question is whether the trade off it illustrates applies. Engage with that.