Tories and Lib Dems criticise Starmer’s ‘spinelessness’ after U-turn on digital ID – UK politics live | Politics
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Reeves downplays significance of digital ID card U-turn, saying employees will have to verify their identity digitally
Rachel ReevesThe Chancellor accused the media of exaggerating the extent of the digital identity U-turn.
In an interview broadcast on BBC Breakfast this morning, he said:
When it comes to digital identity, I think this story has been written a little too much for beginners.
We say you’ll need a mandatory digital ID to work in the UK.
The difference now is whether it should be a single piece of ID, a digital ID card, or whether it could be an e-visa or an e-passport, and we’re pretty comfortable with what form that would take…
I don’t think most people care whether it’s a monolithic digital identity or some sort of digital identity that can be verified.
When asked whether repeated U-turns had undermined trust in the government, he replied:
What matters is where you’re trying to go. Our government, this government, our focus is on growing the economy and improving the living standards of workers.
Blunkett says he is ‘disappointed’ by digital identity U-turn and blames Starmer for lack of ‘strategic plan’ to defend policy
Today on the show David BlunkettLabor home secretary under Tony Blair and a strong supporter of identity cards, said he was disappointed but not surprised by the digital identity U-turn. said Blunkett.
I was disappointed but not surprised.
I wasn’t surprised because the original announcement was not followed by a narrative or supporting statement or any strategic plan that involved other ministers and those who were committed to this issue actually putting the issue out there.
And as a result, those who oppose this plan for all kinds of nefarious and very different (some inexplicable) reasons have managed to mobilize public opinion and operationalize online opposition to it.
So unfortunately this is indicative of a failure to explain why this policy is important, a failure to follow through on the details of how it would work, and then a failure to reinforce it with a plan and communication of action.
And when you fail to do all that, it’s no wonder this thing ends up in the sand.
Blunkett is right to say that Keir Starmer announced his digital identity plans rather haphazardly. Digital identity was not included in Labour’s manifesto. Starmer announced the proposal in a surprise speech last autumn, just before the Labor Party conference. He presented this as a big change. However, he did not mention it in his conference speech the following week and did not build support for it within the party.
At least it was popular when he announced the plan. But public support later collapsed, leading to claims that Starmer had the “reverse Midas touch”. Eleni Courea was reported at the time. In October he wrote:
According to polling by More in Common, net support for digital ID cards fell from 35% at the beginning of the summer to -14% over the weekend following Starmer’s announcement.
The findings suggest that the proposal has suffered significantly from its association with an unpopular government. 53 per cent of voters surveyed in June said they were in favor of digital ID cards for all Britons, while 19 per cent were against it.
Conservatives and Liberal Democrats criticize Starmer’s ‘spinelessness’ after U-turn on digital identity
Good morning. Keir Starmer has made another U-turn with mandatory digital ID. Here is the one night story of Peter Walker and Pippa Crerar.
few days ago Noah Keate Listed from Politico seven big U-turns The government has already done this. Today’s news brings that number to eight, but if you play hard you can probably find more, because government always requires adapting to circumstances and so plans always change. But these are a major, complete U-turn in the usual sense of the word as applied to politics; Significant reversals in signature policy.
U-turns normally allow the opposition to enjoy saying ‘we told you so’ and this happened many times overnight. This from Kemi Badenoch.
The Prime Minister is ‘turning the corner’… heading straight into another U-turn.
Good riddance. It was a terrible policy anyway.
This is from his shadow Cabinet Minister Mike Wood.
While we welcome the cancellation of mandatory identification, this is yet another humiliating U-turn by the government. Keir Starmer’s spinelessness is becoming the pattern, not the exception.
What was sold as a tough crackdown on illegal work is now set to become another costly, ill-conceived experiment, abandoned at the first sign of pressure from Labour’s backbenchers.
And where is this from? Lisa SmartLiberal Democrat Cabinet Office spokesman.
Number 10 must be ordering motion sickness tablets in bulk at this rate to cope with all the U-turns.
It was clear from the start that this was a proposal doomed to failure and would cost taxpayers an inordinate amount of money to deliver absolutely nothing.
The political debate about the merits or otherwise of this was most recently captured in a nice tweet between my colleague and I (Bluesky tweets). Pippa Crerar And Sam FreedmanComment Freed is a sub-stacker and policy expert. Pippa at the top of the thread in question:
Remember Lynton Crosby’s “barnacles off the boat” strategy? In the 2010 and 2015 elections, the Conservatives successfully got rid of unpopular policies and perceptions that hindered their appeal to voters. Instead, they focused on key messages they believed would help win over swing voters. It worked.
This is the argument used by governments of all stripes throughout the ages to justify U-turns: take the short-term hit, because you’ll be better off in the long run if you abandon an unpopular policy.
However freedmanBy responding to this article, in question:
Unfortunately, you need a boat for this strategy to work.
By this he means there is no point in Starmer giving up his unpopular policies if no one knows what his core, popular policies are.
Starmer used to claim he had a boat; He announced this to the cabinet yesterday and reduced the cost of living. But Labor MPs fear voters either don’t get the message or are unimpressed.
Here is the agenda of the day.
Afternoon: Keir Starmer faces Kemi Badenoch at PMQs.
After 12.30: Home Affairs Minister Shabana Mahmood told MPs about West Midlands police support for Maccabi Tel Aviv fans who were banned from last year’s match against Aston Villa. It will present the results of the investigation by the police inspectorate into how WMP justified the decision. Chief Constable Craig Guildford is accused of giving misleading information to MPs about the intelligence used to justify the decision, and while Mahmood does not have the power to sack Guildford, there is speculation he will say he no longer trusts him.
14:00: Chancellor Rachel Reeves will confirm plans to revive the Northern Powerhouse Rail project at an event in Leeds.
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