Burnham to scrap digital ID scheme to concentrate on cost-of-living issues in 'reset' of Labour's priorities

The Makerfield MP will officially be sworn in to Number 10 on Monday, and is said to be focusses on resetting the government's priorities and re-centre his focus to "everyday" issues facing Brits across the country.

Mr Burnham vowed the money and time dedicated to bringing in the scheme will instead be diverted to help tackle the cost-of-living.

The scheme originally announced by Sir Keir Starmer was to make ID cards mandatory but following backlash, it was tweaked to no longer be compulsory for working-age people.

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Brits were still going to be required to verify their ID digitally, but it emerged on Saturday evening that Mr Burnham will scrap the whole scheme when he takes office.

A spokesperson for the incoming PM said: "One of the first things this government will do is put its focus where people need it right now: creating breathing space and delivering change they can feel in their everyday lives.

"That means all the time and resources that was going to be spent on a national ID scheme will go instead to where it’s most needed, such as helping with the cost of living.

"This government is determined to bring power back to communities, instead of hoarding it in Whitehall. We will work every day to lift this country back up to where it belongs, with growth in every postcode, and hope in every heart."

It is expected that right-to-work checks will remain mandatory for all employers, and that bosses can already carry them out digitally, which is seen as a more secure system than paper documents.

Britain gets a new Prime Minister on Monday. Stay with the LBC app for full live coverage as Andy Burnham takes the keys to Downing Street.

The Office for Budget Responsibility estimated last November that the programme would cost £1.8 billion over three years.

Downing Street rejected this figure, but the Government did not provide an estimate of its own, which a parliamentary committed noted earlier this year left open the possibility it could cost more.

Ministers expected the programme to go further, becoming the “bedrock of the modern state” in a system of government by app".

But support for digital ID collapsed after Sir Keir announced the plans, and the Government later said it would be voluntary for right-to-work checks.

Reports have suggested he could be preparing to break with another of Sir Keir’s policies and approve further oil and gas drilling in the North Sea.

Labour’s 2024 manifesto, which Mr Burnham has promised to honour, said the party would not issue new North Sea licences, arguing they would "not take a penny off bills" or improve energy security while accelerating climate change.

But the incoming prime minister is now said to be "open-minded" about the policy.