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Marching orders delayed: Veterans' Digital ID off to a slow start. Much owed to the few, but takeup is under 1%. More than 15,000 former members of the UK's armed forces have successfully applied for a digital version of their veterans ID card since its launch in October, according to the Government Digital Service (GDS).  However this is less than 1 percent of the 1.8 million former forces personnel who are eligible for the physical Veteran Card. These physical cards have been automatically issued to those leaving the armed forces since 2019. Those who left the armed forces before then can apply for one for free. The optional digital card, which the government had originally planned to launch in the summer of 2025, is held within the GOV.UK One Login app. Unlike the physical card, it cannot be used as photo identity for domestic British Airways flights or in applications for a Veterans Railcard for discounted rail tickets. And despite being digital, it cannot currently be used online, meaning it is limited to some in-person uses, such as registering as a veteran with a doctor or claiming cheaper entry to some museums. The digital veterans ID is held in the GOV.UK One Login app, which the government plans to rebrand as the GOV.UK Wallet when it has added more forms of identity. In December, GDS started testing a digital version of the driving license - using the same app - with both its own staff and colleagues from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). "Later this year, the digital driving license will be rolled out more widely, enabling people to store their driving license on their phone, making it easier and faster to prove who you are and your driving entitlements," GDS said in a blogpost. GDS is working on digital programmatic verification of both veterans' ID cards and driving licenses, which would allow online use as well as in-person verification. It plans to involve third-party service providers in tests of how they can use programmatic verification later this year. The work is part of the government's efforts to develop digital identity. It pre-dates prime minister Sir Kier Starmer's announcement in September that digital identity would be compulsory in right-to-work checks by the end of the current Parliament, which he abandoned earlier this month.