Digital ID

Chris Hinchliff Excerpts
Thursday 15th January 2026

(1 day, 8 hours ago)

Commons Chamber
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Josh Simons Portrait Josh Simons
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The digital ID database will be based on the principle of data minimisation. The minimum possible data that the Government already have will be stored about every individual citizen, so that we can do what we need to do, which is join up public services better.

Chris Hinchliff Portrait Chris Hinchliff (North East Hertfordshire) (Lab)
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I am pleased that the Government have dropped the plans for mandatory digital ID; it was always clear that the British public would heavily reject that idea, and it is our duty as Members to jealously guard our constituents’ civil liberties. Will the Minister convey the lessons learned from this decision to his colleagues across Government, and persuade them to drop proposals to erode the right to a jury trial and restrict the right to protest against animal testing?

Josh Simons Portrait Josh Simons
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I will feed those comments back to the relevant Secretary of State.