Speeches by Simons.

“I think I understood the hon. Member’s question, so let me have a crack at answering it. I will address the second part of her question first. The constituents who email her, who will find this scheme useful, are asking for more joined-up public services. They are asking not to have to fight the Government to get thing…”

“I can assure my hon. Friend that the consultation will involve going right across the country to the places where people live, to listen, to engage and to build a consensus on the scheme’s design. I should also underscore that the status quo is that we are not making enough effort to reach people who are digitally excl…”

“I can confirm three things in response to the different elements of the hon. Lady’s question. First, she mentions consent. The system itself will be based on consent; it will ask people for their consent in how their data is shared and used, and she will see more about that in the coming weeks. Secondly, there will be …”

“We announced the intention to roll out digital ID cards, and I have clarified today that those will be free for anyone who wants one. We will consult on how to make that maximally useful for every British person who wants a Government who work better for them. That is what we will do.”

“I am delighted that the hon. Member is so pleased with gov.uk. I am sure that he will be equally delighted when we roll out the simple, easy-to-use and effective digital ID, which will help him to access a whole range of public services through gov.uk that he cannot currently access. In the coming weeks, we will show h…”

“The digital ID database will be based on the principle of data minimisation. The minimum possible data that the Government already have will be stored about every individual citizen, so that we can do what we need to do, which is join up public services better.”

“Secondly, nobody will be stopped and asked for this new digital credential by the police. No card, no papers, no police.”

“To clarify, I was not saying that contributions from other Members were lies. I was saying that there are lies out there in the country about this system. I would like to put that on the record. We want a system that people want to use to make their lives easier, so that they no longer have to fill out forms multiple t…”

“Those countries are placing their citizens’ consent at the centre of the system, and that is what we will build here in the UK. That takes me to our third principle: it will be useful. I want to build a credential that our constituents want to have because having it makes their lives easier. In our economy and our soci…”

“I was told that I have 11 minutes, and I have about 10 more minutes of my speech. I will not be taking interventions, so the hon. Member can sit down and stop asking. If we get this right, we will empower the most vulnerable: those experiencing homelessness, who are currently left behind. We will not accept the status …”

“He will not. We are working with the UK’s leading national security experts, including the National Cyber Security Centre, to build a system with cutting-edge protections against cyber-attacks and identity fraud. Let me be specific: we are not creating a centralised master database.”

“I am told that I have 11 minutes. I want to do three things today, as I endeavour not to be hapless: first, to explain why we want to build this new national digital credential and the principles that will guide us as we do so; secondly, to debunk some of the nonsense and myths surrounding this debate; and thirdly, to …”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Furniss. I thank the hon. Member for Keighley and Ilkley (Robbie Moore) for introducing this important debate today; I hope that it is the first of many such debates to come, including in the main Chamber. Also, I apologise to the hon. Member for Chester South and Eddi…”

“I will not. I have loads more to cover. Millions of people right now are digitally excluded. That is not a status quo that we are prepared to accept. We will need help to meet this challenge. Civil society, businesses, trade unions and community groups across the UK will be our partners. That is why we are consulting o…”

“In this country, at present millions of people cannot access public services online, and millions lack the IDs that they need to go about their daily lives. That is the status quo, and we will not accept it. That is why we are introducing a new national digital credential, free for everyone over 16, that will be inclus…”

“To be very clear about right-to-work checks: the current system is not fit for purpose. The United Kingdom is out of whack with international peers, and that creates the perception that we have a weak, illegal labour market regime. I am sure that the shadow Minister would not be against toughening up enforcement agains…”

“Let me be clear about the status quo that the Conservative party left behind: millions of people right now are digitally excluded from accessing public services, and millions of people lack the identity credentials that they need to access them. We will not accept that. We will make sure that post offices, libraries an…”

“Building a new digital credential for UK systems is a major public good that we need to do carefully and take our time over. That is why, as I said, we will launch a major public consultation in the new year. That consultation will include a whole series of questions about the use cases for digital ID. I look forward t…”

“Around the world and across Europe, countries use digital checks to evaluate whether someone has a legal right to work, but we do not. While we have brilliant digital verification tools, millions of checks use unreliable paper-based systems based on passports, birth certificates and other forms of evidence. This leaves…”

“Mr Speaker—[Hon. Members: “Bring back Chris.”] Sorry to disappoint! Over the past few months, I have begun to stand up a high-calibre team, working at pace to develop proposals for a free new digital credential for all UK citizens. This credential will be inclusive, secure and useful, learning from the best schemes aro…”