ID cards. Convenience or control?

In this episode of Fearless Diversity, Rachel Cashman - the fearless facilitator - and Simon Fanshawe - the diversity dissident - tackle one of the most contentious policy revivals in years: the return of the digital ID card. 

 

From dinner parties to football terraces the argument is dividing Britain.  Are ID cards a slick, modern tool to cut red tape and to create a sense of Britishness - or the threat of Big Brother made real, of a society where our lives are one barcode away from state control and all-day surveillance. Is the BritCard a massive invasion of privacy or the key to our national identity? 

 

Although aren’t we being a bit hypocritical? Why are we so bothered about government having limited info on us so we can get benefits when we’ve already surrendered everything about ourselves to Google and Facebook? 

 

And can government actually pull it off? HS2 or the Edinburgh trams anyone? What will ID cards give us that we don’t already have? Ands what about Auty Betty who’ll never have an iphone so she’ll never go digital? If you’re an illegal immigrant you’ve already escaped the system so why will the BritCard stop you being in the UK? 

 

Will digital IDs streamline Britain’s services, build trust, cement values and create belonging or instead, in a country where only 12% of the population trust government, just be felt as another state overreach? Will the BritCard bind us closer - or drive us further apart?

 

Fearless Diversity doesn’t just chew over politics—it digs into how policies shape the lives we live, the work we do, and the society we want to be part of. Enjoy, listen and share. 

For more about Rachel: Who Is The Fearless Facilitator? - Fearless Facilitator

 

For more about Simon: Who We Are – Diversity by Design

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