Labour’s proposed digital ID scheme could be extended to newborn babies, it is understood.
Ministers are believed to be holding private talks about the possibility of rolling out the scheme to include children from birth.
Plans for a digital ID system were announced by Sir Keir Starmer in September as part of efforts to clamp down on illegal working and curb illegal migration.
Secret discussions have been held by Cabinet Office minister Josh Simons around the possibility of including newborns in the scheme, the Daily Mail reports.
The Labour MP is understood to have told civil society groups a similar system is followed by other countries whereby babies receive digital identities.
Shadow Cabinet Office minister, Mike Wood, said the rumoured plans would serve as a “deeply sinister overreach by Labour”.
A Whitehall source told the Mail it was “all hypothetical” and “no one will be forcing” children to have digital ID.
A Government spokesman said: “The only mandatory area of the programme will be for digital right-to-work checks.
The Prime Minister announced plans for the digital ID scheme last September
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“Only people starting a new job will need to use the scheme.”
Upon announcing plans for the ID system at the end of last year, Labour said it would be rolled out to Britons by 2029.
Alongside helping to combat illegal working, it aims to make using vital Government services easier for the vast majority of people.
Technology minister Liz Kendall said digital ID will also “offer greater security and actually greater control over your own data”.
Almost three million people have signed a petition opposing the plans
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She said data was “much less likely to be lost or stolen” adding: “Privacy and security will be hardwired into the system from the start.”
The plans have however proven controversial, with almost three million people having signed a petition to not introduce the cards.
Thousands of protestors meanwhile took the streets of central London in October to show their opposition.
The exact cost of the controversial scheme is currently unclear.
A protest held in opposition to the plans in central London last October was attended by thousands of people
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The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) estimates it will cost £1.8billion to roll out the ID system over the next three years, but this figure has been rejected by the Government.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman previously said: “The number in the OBR forecast was an initial early estimate spread over a number of years.
“We don’t recognise it as an accurate cost of the programme, the scope of which is yet to be decided, let alone costed.
“Any costs in this spending review period will be met within existing settlements.
“The Government will run a full consultation in due course.”