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Britain to introduce compulsory digital ID for workers

(www.reuters.com)
525 points alex77456 | 2 comments | 26 Sep 25 02:09 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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lvturner ◴[26 Sep 25 03:07 UTC] No.45382168[source]▶
Having just paid a small fortune to renew my passport. I'm not super excited about this, especially as I live outside the UK.

I also don't trust them not to make a complete hash of all this, removing all potential utility while simultaneously increasing the chances of my ID being stolen.

sigh

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elcritch ◴[26 Sep 25 03:24 UTC] No.45382273[source]▶
As an American it seems to me that the UK government insists on finding a way to upset all sides on any given issue like illegal immigration. If anything it's the singular and unique skill of Whitehall.
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foldr ◴[26 Sep 25 18:37 UTC] No.45389637[source]▶
Don't be misled by the reaction on HN. The general concept of a national ID card is not unpopular in the UK:

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/trackers/support-for-th...

IMO this is a gimmick and probably won't have much effect either for good or bad. I would vote against it given the chance. But there aren't that many British people who feel especially strongly about this.

replies(1): >>45390692 #
1. hayd ◴[26 Sep 25 20:27 UTC] No.45390692[source]▶
> I would vote against it given the chance.

Unfortunately the British people are rarely given a chance to vote and even more rarely listened to.

replies(1): >>45390730 #
2. foldr ◴[26 Sep 25 20:32 UTC] No.45390730[source]▶
In the last 10 years the UK has had 4 general elections and the Brexit referendum. Some countries have more local democracy (e.g. direct elections of DAs in the US), but in terms of opportunities to change the national government or influence national policy, I don't think the UK is doing too badly.