Britons should be given a digital ID 'superapp' that allows them to do everything from proving their age in a pub to claiming benefits and reporting potholes, Tony Blair's think-tank urges Sir Keir Starmer today.
Just days before the Prime Minister is expected to announce plans for an identity scheme to tackle illegal immigration, a new report by his predecessor's influential organisation tells him to make it a 'flagship programme' used by everyone over 18 in the country.
The Tony Blair Institute (TBI) says that rather than creating a 'papers, please' society, it would instead bring 'control and convenience' to people's interactions with the state.
Its new report says the system should become the 'universal method for verifying identity' and lists a huge number of 'everyday tasks' it could perform via a smartphone app rather than just proving the right to live or work in the UK.
These range from 'proving their age to buy a pint at a pub' to 'reporting potholes' and 'finding a child's school report' as well as receiving 'personalised health-prevention advice' and 'accessing benefits'.
