The UK's next Prime Minister Burnham announced the cancellation of the digital ID card scheme.

A spokesperson for the leader of the British Labour Party said that Andy Burnham, who will officially take office as Prime Minister on Monday, will abolish the highly controversial national ID card scheme introduced by the government. The spokesperson referred to a cross-party committee of MPs who evaluated the ID card project as a "complete failure of engineering", and the funds originally allocated to it will now be redirected to Burnham's priority areas, such as social welfare. Burnham was elected leader of the governing Labour Party on Friday and will assume office as Prime Minister on Monday. Starmer had launched the digital ID card scheme in September last year, requiring all workers to hold a digital ID card with the intention of combating illegal immigration and countering the political influence of the UK Reform Party. However, the policy faced strong opposition from the public, and Starmer cancelled the mandatory requirement in January this year. Burnham's spokesperson stated, "All the human and financial resources originally planned for the national digital ID card project will be redirected to areas in most urgent need of funds, such as easing the burden of living expenses for the public." The UK Office for Budget Responsibility estimated in November last year that the total cost of the ID card project for the three fiscal years from 2026/27 to 2028/29 would be around 1.8 billion.