"You don't need to know anything about this topic to take part," writes chief secretary to the prime minister Darren Jones in the invitation asking ordinary Britons to join a government-run People's Panel on Digital ID.
The People's Panel: dates, format and the question
Invitations have gone to 36,000 UK addresses asking recipients to weigh in on one explicit prompt: "How should we design a Digital ID system for the UK?" Those chosen will meet in person in central Birmingham on two weekends, 30–31 May and 20–21 June, and take part in three weekday evening sessions on Zoom from 6–9pm beginning Thursday 21 May. The invitation letter seen by The Register does not include the Birmingham venue address.
Participant selection and exclusions — who can and cannot join
Organisers plan to select around 100–120 volunteers from respondents to represent a cross-section of the UK population. The panel is described as a forum where participants will hear from "engaging speakers, including experts and [the] minister in charge implementing this policy," break into facilitated groups, and ultimately produce recommendations for government ministers.
The invitation explicitly bars a list of people from participating: elected representatives, those working for political parties, the staff and close relatives of MPs, journalists, and those working for media organizations. That restriction means members of the press are excluded from the deliberations alongside other categories of politically connected actors.
Payments, expenses and a tax/benefits warning
People who take part in all seven sessions will receive £550, delivered in cash, vouchers or a combination of both. The invitation cautions that "cash payments may affect your tax position or benefit entitlement." The government will also cover meals, flights or train tickets, hotel accommodation and childcare or other care costs for participants.
- Panel payment: £550 (cash, vouchers or both)
- Expenses covered: meals, transport (flights or train), hotel, childcare or other care costs
- Financial caution: cash payments may affect tax or benefit entitlement
Organisers and the expected budget
The People's Panel is being run by the Sortition Foundation, a UK-based social enterprise, together with pollster Ipsos. The government has previously said it expects to spend around £630,000 on the People's Panel.
What this means for the public, journalists, and ministers
- The public: A sample of roughly 100–120 volunteers will be paid to participate and asked to deliberate on a single, policy-forward question about designing a national Digital ID system. Invitations went to 36,000 addresses to recruit that panel.
- Journalists: The panel's rules explicitly exclude journalists and media staff from participating, which means the deliberations will take place without direct press presence or in-room reporting.
- Ministers: The panel is set up to hear from "the minister in charge implementing this policy" and to produce recommendations intended for government ministers, creating a direct advisory channel from the recruited participants to policymaking officials.
Visible elsewhere in the record: the story includes an image caption noting a protest march in London opposing Digital ID in December 2025 (image credit: Elena Rostunova / Shutterstock), an indication that public debate over digital identity has an active street presence. The People's Panel offers one route for the government to gather public opinion, but it does so with a narrowly framed question, explicit exclusion rules, and paid participation — details that shape both who speaks and how their views reach ministers.
Original story: https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2026/04/24/digital_it_consult/
