UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is reportedly exploring the idea of launching a national digital ID system, inspired in part by India’s Aadhaar program.
The goal? To modernize public services and help crack down on illegal employment.
During his recent trip to Mumbai, Starmer met with Nandan Nilekani, the brains behind Aadhaar, to learn how the system transformed service delivery and curbed corruption in one of the world’s largest economies.
What’s behind Starmer’s plan?
As per the reports from The Guardian, the proposed system, nicknamed “BritCard,” would act as a central digital ID for citizens.
It could make accessing public services like school admissions, welfare benefits, healthcare, and driving licenses much easier.
The government also plans to make it mandatory for employment checks, arguing that it will help crack down on illegal work and boost tax compliance.
Recognizing how Aadhaar streamlined India’s administrative system, Starmer made it clear that the UK’s version would be quite different in both design and data policies.
“We’re not looking to replicate biometric tracking,” he reportedly said, stressing that any British system would leave out fingerprints and iris scans, focusing instead on inclusivity and transparency.
The Labour government plans to pilot the BritCard in select areas before rolling it out nationwide, aiming to complete the launch by the end of this parliamentary term in 2029.
Sources at Downing Street say the digital ID would be run publicly, not handed over to private tech companies.
Officials think this approach could help rebuild trust after earlier ID card proposals were scrapped in 2010 over privacy worries and cost overruns.
Starmer is framing the plan as part of his wider “Modern Governance” agenda, aimed at cutting red tape and making it easier for people to access government services.
Critics warn of privacy risks
Even with government reassurances, the proposed BritCard has sparked a heated debate across civil society and politics.
A public petition calling for the plan to be scrapped has already gathered over 2.8 million signatures just days after the announcement, highlighting worries about government overreach, data misuse, and creeping surveillance.
Civil liberties groups have warned that making the ID mandatory could threaten individual freedoms and put sensitive information at risk of misuse by both the state and corporations.
Opposition leaders aren’t holding back either.
Several Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs have slammed the plan as “a digital power grab,” warning that it could leave behind vulnerable groups like undocumented migrants, low-income citizens, and older people who struggle with digital access.
Critics also fear the scheme could end up repeating the same mistakes that doomed earlier ID projects, which were dropped over security issues and ballooning costs.
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