Digital ID cards get more vocal support from MI6’s Former Chief, Sir Alex Younger, to address some hardline political stances on immigration. Downing Street is reportedly exploring the route for digital IDs and a digital wallet for every person in the UK to verify their right to work and live. High-profile figures like Tony Blair have repeatedly lobbied the current government to tackle this pain point with our knowledge of the capabilities and option to leverage digital IDs.
Sir Alex also suggested the UK needed to take more responsibility for the issue that gets increasingly worse at easily accessible UK shores from popular crossing locations such as France.
France is engaged with the UK on a “groundbreaking” migration deal to manage the deportation of migrants back to France, as the UK will accept the equivalent number of security checked asylum seekers. The “one-in one-out” solution was proposed during a historic three-day state visit by the French president. The piloted scheme would have a target to return 50 migrants a week, Keir Starmer said, and be ramped up if successful.
He said this would destroy the people smuggling networks and operations that frequently turn migrants up on UK soil as “a global crisis, an EU crisis and a crisis for our two nations” ensues. Nearly 20,000 people have made the desperate journey so far in 2025 but the government said attempts to do so still when the scheme gets underway would be “in vain”. The problem is European wide, the two argued, with aggressive and escalating tactics being discussed which could see their nuclear deterrents being used in the event of an attack, collaboration on AI and supercomputers. Adults would be the first to be deported from high priority countries.
The plans combining a “united effort” with “more intent” will receive “scrutiny in full transparency and understanding with the [European] Commission and EU Member states”. The government has already begun cracking down on illegal working.
