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The agreement between the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union on the EU Digital Identity Wallet is open to abuse and gives Brussels the ability to deny people rights and control them.

According to the new European legislation, the wallets, which are to be voluntary for the time being, will include digital versions of all ID cards, driving licenses, degree certificates, and medical documentation.

The European Commission insists that the system will be secure, and the current Spanish presidency of the EU is saying that this will make the EU a digital leader at a global level in protecting democratic values, but what has digitalisation got to do with European values?

On the contrary, the move actually threatens European values as argued by 504 academics and experts from 39 countries who have signed an open letter warning of the dangers to people’s online security and freedom. 

The pandemic moved us in this direction when the covid-19 vaccine passports were introduced and limited the right to travel. The new wallet will move us much further in the direction of oppression.

Having all documents in one place means that they can be confiscated in one click. This was done by the Trudeau administration in Canada when, during covid, it denied vaccine refusers access to their accounts and later removed insurance rights from drivers participating in the protest blockade of the capital, Ottawa. 

It also means that member states begin to lose the exclusive right to rescind the documentation that has been issued. Brussels will be able to do that as well. Brussels and Commissioner Thierry Breton want to go further still by introducing the digital euro currency, while Breton is the commissioner seeking to censor social media. 

If financial matters find their way into this wallet, greater control of people’s lives will be facilitated with the possibility of introducing a system of social credits or electronic sanctioning of those engaged in protests. Such a system will also enable the authorities to control the way people spend their money as happened in Canada and Brazil. Digital currency makes business easier, but it is also an instrument for removing our rights to privacy. 

The head of Poland’s central bank Adam Glapiński, says consumers do not want their bank to know about all their transactions and full digital centralisation of transactions removes that right to anonymity. 

This latest EU move is also tied to the proposed treaty changes, which include the phasing out of all national currencies in favour of the euro. Not only would Poland be denied the right to conduct its own monetary policy, but the EU would also control the wallets of Polish citizens.

Banks in Canada and Australia have already begun to count the carbon footprints of their clients’ purchases. This is just one step away from stopping them from making some transactions if certain limits are exceeded. 

But it is the EU, together with China, that is a leader in constructing electronic leashes for its citizens. The digital transformation of post-pandemic funds is to help push Europe in that direction too. 

However, the irony is that this whole process in the EU could be stalled as a result of the poor state of the digital economy in Germany. That country is way behind when it comes to access to broadband and fibre optics and without that, it will be difficult for them to manage the transfer of the masses of data involved. It is hard to talk about digital currency or digital passports in a country where there are still problems with online services and online card transactions. 

The stance of the Polish government on this matter is not clear, and the 28 November sitting of the European Commission, at which this will be debated, is approaching fast. There is a danger that the new Polish government may just let this through. 

There can be little doubt that Eurocrats want to create a regime in which citizens are increasingly controlled by the authorities based in Brussels. 

The article above was written by Dariusz Matuszak as published by Remix.  It is paraphrased from an article originally published in Polish by wPolityce.