Event overview
- Date: Tuesday 21 April 2026
- Time: 11:30 – 12:30
- Location: Online (Zoom – joining details will be shared with registered attendees)
This consultation from Cabinet Office and The Rt Hon Darren Jones MP seeks views on a proposed national digital ID system for British and Irish citizens and foreign nationals with permission to be in the UK.
The government intends to introduce a national digital ID (identity document) system. This will sit at the heart of next-generation digital public services in the UK and support innovation in the wider economy. It aims to help unlock entirely new ways to offer goods and services, and be key to making people’s interactions with the state as efficient and useful as those they are accustomed to in the private sector, like online banking.
This 60-minute online session for members of The Payments Association will provide a collaborative space to share views, test ideas, and contribute directly to the drafting of our formal response to the consultation.
This consultation closes at 12:30pm on 5 May 2026.
Background
The Cabinet Office have proposed that three core principles will guide the design of the new digital ID. It must be:
- Useful
- Inclusive
- Trusted
To deliver the new system in the most cost-effective way possible, the government will be expanding on existing systems which are already successfully proving and verifying people’s identities.
The hope is that the new digital ID will be something people will want to get, rather than something they must have. There will be no legal obligation for people to have or present the digital ID.
Who should attend
A national digital ID system is vital public infrastructure for the digital age. The Cabinet Office want to draw on the expertise and wisdom of a wide range of stakeholders, from businesses to trade unions, technologists and civil society, as well as leaders in the public and private sectors who can use the digital ID to improve services for people in the UK.
Key design decisions will only be taken after this consultation.
What happens next
Once TPA members’ views have been collated during this session, we will create a draft which will be circulated to relevant working groups and attendees to the session.
Following the initial 8-week consultation period, the Cabinet Office will be running a ‘People’s Panel on Digital ID’ – an in-depth deliberative engagement process with a broadly UK representative sample of 100-120 individuals to discuss the policy in detail. Individuals will be selected through sortition (civic lottery). This process will conclude on 21 June, which will be the end of the formal consultation process.
Views shared in both these stages will be carefully considered by the government to develop next steps for the digital ID system. A formal government response to the consultation will be published once all stages of the consultation have concluded and all responses have been properly considered.
Why attend
By attending, members will:
- Contribute directly to a key regulatory consultation
- Ensure their views are reflected in a collective industry response
- Help shape the future regulatory landscape for stablecoins in the UK
This is a practical, discussion-led workshop designed to gather real member insight rather than presentations or briefings. Member input is essential to ensure our response is comprehensive and representative of the views of our membership.
