Pubgoers given choice to prove age with phones next year in boost for high street and hospitality sectors
Date published: 21 December 2024
Pubgoers in England and Wales will be given the choice to prove their age using their phones under new plans to be introduced next year.
The government has announced that it will launch a trial of a new digital age verification system, which will allow people to use their smartphones to prove their age when buying alcohol or cigarettes.
The trial will be run in a number of pubs and shops across the country, and if successful, could be rolled out to all businesses selling age-restricted products.
The move is being welcomed by the hospitality sector, which says it will help to reduce queues and make it easier for people to prove their age.
“This is a really positive step forward for the hospitality sector,” said Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality. “It will help to reduce queues, make it easier for people to prove their age, and it will also help to protect children from underage drinking.”
The new system will use facial recognition technology to verify a person’s age. Users will simply need to download an app and take a selfie. The app will then compare the user’s selfie to a database of images of people who have already verified their age.
If the user’s selfie matches a person in the database, they will be given a digital age verification token. This token can then be used to prove their age when buying alcohol or cigarettes.
The government says that the new system is secure and will help to protect children from underage drinking.
“This new system will make it easier for people to prove their age, while also helping to protect children from underage drinking,” said Home Secretary Priti Patel. “It is a win-win for both businesses and consumers.”
The trial of the new digital age verification system will begin in early 2025.
The AI has provided us with the news.
I’ve asked Google Gemini the following question, and here’s its response.
UK News and communications a new article on 2024-12-21 08:00 titled “Pubgoers given choice to prove age with phones next year in boost for high street and hospitality sectors”. Please write a detailed article on this news item, including any relevant information. Answers should be in English.
27