A HUGE change to driving licenses is set to be introduced within months, affecting 50 million Britons.
Driving licenses will be digitized and made available on mobile phones in a bid to “drag the Government into the 2020s”.
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Both provisional and full driving licenses will be digitized this yearCredit: Getty
The switch from a plastic card to an app aims to simplify buying alcohol, voting and boarding domestic flights.
Drivers will continue to be issued temporary and full driving licenses with a photo card, the digital version being voluntary.
The Gov.uk app, developed by the Department of Science and Technology, is launching this year.
The plans are due to be unveiled by MPs at an event in central London next week.
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Following the example of Australia, Iceland, Denmark and Norway, the digital driver’s license will only be available in the in-app wallet and will not be available through Google or Apple wallets.
Developers are toying with the idea that users can hide their address on the license for privacy.
Supermarkets could link the license to self-checkout technology so customers can check in in person to buy drinks without waiting for staff.
The Department of Science and Technology is also exploring ways to integrate other services into the app, including paying taxes, proving right to work and claiming benefits.
The app will also work at airports for passengers flying within the UK, meaning they won’t need to show physical ID such as a passport or licence.
A source told The Times: “This is not about replacing the photo card, it’s about giving people the ability to have their license on their phone and giving them a new way to prove their identity and age.
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“The photo card, whether provisional or full licence, is the main form of ID used in the UK and this will be an extension of that.”
Around 50 million Britons hold a green or pink driving license after it was first introduced more than 120 years ago.
Since 1998, it has been the size of a credit card.
Jack Cousens, head of road policy for The AA, said it would be handy to have a digital license if pulled over by the police.
He stressed that “it may take some time” before they are accepted in foreign countries – for example, when they rent a car.
The EU advocates that each member state has at least one form of digital identity by 2026.
Big Brother Watch, a privacy campaign group, argues that digital IDs become a problem “when they become mandatory for basic functions”.
The app is believed to have “strong security measures” similar to banking apps.
The move will raise eyebrows as it takes a whiff of Sir Tony Blair’s proposal for compulsory national identity cards.
The former prime minister pushed the cards in 2005, but the plan was dropped.
Writing in the Sunday Times, Sir Tony said: “We need a plan to control immigration. If we don’t have rules, we get prejudice.
“In the office, I believed that the best solution was an identity system so that we would know exactly who has the right to be here.
“With, again, technology, we should go because the world is moving to digital identification. If not, the new border controls will have to be very effective.”
But asked if she could rule out the introduction of digital ID cards, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “It’s not in our manifesto. It’s not our approach.”
A government spokesman said that “technology now allows digital identities to be more secure than physical ones, but we are clear that they will not be mandatory.”
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Lawmakers are exploring ways to integrate other services into the app, such as paying taxes. Credit: Getty
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