Despite this U-turn the plan is still there, neither the scheme nor the giant price tag (1.8 billions pounds!) have gone away entirely. The government wants to introduce Digital IDs, and while they might not be mandatory at first, they could create a digital surveillance infrastructure that could fundamentally change how we live.

Once this system is in place, 'mission creep' is inevitable. We will be forced to use digital ID more and more in our daily lives. It will be used for profiling and surveillance, tracking our interactions with the State and more.

https://www.openrightsgroup.org/campaign/say-no-to-digital-id/