Public support for the UK’s proposed national digital ID system has declined sharply following Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s announcement, according to new polling. Net support fell from plus 35 percent earlier in the summer to minus 14 percent. Thirty-one percent of respondents now favor the scheme, while 45 percent oppose it.
In June, before the announcement, 53 percent of voters expressed support for a national digital ID, with only 19 percent opposed. Since the announcement, more than 2.6 million people have signed a petition against the policy. Opposition is strongest among those dissatisfied with the government, with 58 percent against the plan. Among 2024 Reform Party voters, 23 percent now support the scheme while 62 percent oppose it.
Separate surveys earlier in 2025 showed a more mixed picture. Research by Ipsos found 57 percent of Britons supported a national ID card scheme, but when asked specifically about digital identity, only 38 percent expressed support, compared with 32 percent opposed. That poll noted greater backing among older respondents and Conservative voters compared to younger participants. A LabourList and Survation survey found 74 percent of Labour members who backed Keir Starmer in 2020 supported digital IDs, with 16 percent opposed.
The digital ID proposal is part of a wider government agenda to require identity verification for employment and to curb illegal work. Officials have framed the scheme as a modernization of identity infrastructure with anti-fraud benefits, building on earlier steps such as identity checks through the NHS App.
Digital identity has long been a contested issue in the UK. The Labour government’s ID card scheme of the 2000s was repealed in 2010, with the identity register dismantled. Recent proposals have also faced skepticism. As ID Tech has reported, the government’s revived plans for digital ID cards have raised concerns that the scheme could create cybersecurity and privacy risks.
The government has attempted to address trust issues, including commissioning a public dialogue in 2023 on governance, privacy, and digital identity frameworks. However, the latest polling shows support is fragile and subject to political context.
Sources: The Guardian, The Independent, AP News, Gov.uk, Ipsos
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
