UK digital ID plan includes local councils, maybe private sector, no new funding

The UK’s government digital ID plan continues to take shape piecemeal, with an expansion to cover a new layer of government services and a partial explanation of how the system will be funded. A central question around choice, however, remains unanswered despite a direct question from parliament.

A body within the Government Digital Service (DVS) will work with local councils across the UK to make services from that level of government accessible with the GOV.UK One Login and the GOV.UK app, just like those at the national level.

New government unit GDS Local unit has been created in part to help councils make efficient and effective procurements and more easily exchange information with the national government. A Government Digital and Data Hub will be launched in support of the latter goal.

GDS Local will hold a local government Innovation Hackathon in Birmingham on November 26 and 27.

GDS Local launched on Saturday within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

No new funds and no CDO

The cost of the national digital ID built around GOV.UK “will depend on what the system looks like,” Minister for Digital Government and Data Ian Murray said in a meeting of the Science, Innovation & Technology Committee on Friday. Funding for the system will be drawn from existing investments, though, Murray said, as reported by Computer Weekly.

“Money from other departments will have to come in for the use cases, in terms of each of these other government departments. If you think about the efficiencies that are on the back of this, it is not just down to cost. The use cases also provide huge efficiencies, which feed into government spending as well,” he explained in response to questions from Committee Member Kit Malthouse.

A chief digital officer is not included in the plan.

What the system looks like will be determined after consultations which begin in January, 2026.

Know-your-role check stymied

Emily Middleton, temporary director general for digital centre design at DSIT, says the role private sector digital identity providers certified to the government’s Digital Identity and Attributes Trust Framework will play “is something that we’ll need to work through.”

The remarks came during a hearing of the parliamentary Science, Innovation & Technology Committee.

Yoti CEO and Co-founder Robin Tombs points out in a LinkedIn post that Middleton’s answer reflects a failure by the government to provide “a sensible & popular answer” about DIATF-certified providers’ role by giving people choice.

“The Govt is getting in an avoidable pickle, which will hopefully get resolved sensibly during the consultation,” Tombs says.

Tombs also shares that Yoti survey results indicate that half of its users expect to use both Yoti’s digital wallet and a government-issued digital ID wallet in the future.

If the role for private sector digital identity service providers was going away in 2029, the value of the Office for Digital Identities and Attributes (OfDIA) updating the registry of certified services near the end of 2025 will be limited.

Yet the register of service providers certified to the DIATF was been updated by OfDIA on Friday. Visitors can now view a list of services, instead of only by provider. Sorting and filtering options have been added, and keyword searching has been introduced to provide accurate results based on partial input. The register can also be downloaded as a CSV file, and a new page launched to provide updates.

Nature abhors a vacuum

If the details being considered in a public consultation process were available for discussion, instead of months away, public worries may or may not be more grounded in reality. But the reassurances might be more fruitful if they redirected the conversation towards the plan’s specifics.

GB News medical commentator Renee Hoenderkamp spelled out fears that a national digital ID will lead to authoritarian government control in a recent television appearance highlighted by AFP (via France24).

The celebrity doctor warns the British public: “say something they don’t like and they will switch you off: no travel, no car, no spending, no life.”

“None of these claims have any factual basis. We have been clear: digital ID will not be compulsory, and it will not be a crime not to have one,” a UK government spokesperson told AFP.

“Digital ID will give people more control over how their data is used and ensure everyone can access the public services they need.”

Tony Blair Institute ED of Politics and Policy Ryan Wain said that a vacuum has been left by the government’s communication about the digital IDs’ purpose and uses, which is being filled by those “whose default is to think the worst of the best intentions.”

Article Topics

BritCard  |  Department for Science Innovation and Technology (DSIT)  |  digital government  |  digital ID  |  Digital Identity and Attributes Trust Framework (DIATF)  |  GDS Local  |  GOV.UK Wallet  |  UK digital ID