Britain needs a “New National Purpose”, argued former Prime Minister Tony Blair in a new report published by his Institute for Global Change. Co-authored with his erstwhile rival from across the despatch box, former Conservative Party leader William Hague, the report called for Britain to implement a wide range of science and technology proposals in order to create a “strategic state”.
One idea sticks out above all: a renewed call for the government to create a “digital identity” system to better manage the relationship between citizens and the state.
The report recommends that Britain take inspiration from countries such as Estonia and develop a system of legally recognised digital IDs. It further suggests a law be passed to codify the “only once” principle in how the government handles our data – the idea being that if, for example, you update your
