The current government Gateway service is to be replaced by March 2018. Government Gateway allows individuals, businesses and agents to use government services online by proving and authenticating their identity, and currently has more than 50m active accounts.

In the most recent government transformation strategy, it emerged the government was aiming to have 25m users registered on Verify by 2020. Latest statistics suggest Verify has around 1.1m users and has been used for 2.6m authentications, raising questions about the government’s procurement strategy. Verify was originally rolled out in 2015 and required the user to have their financial information (ie, bank and credit card statements) and a valid UK passport or UK photocard driving licence at hand to complete the verification process in the first instance.

In a blog covering future developments, Mike Howes-Roberts, the HMRC programme director responsible for transforming government gateway, said HMRC would be providing a new set of services that will support 53 of the existing 123 services hosted.

In a version of the blog published yesterday, Howes-Roberts wrote: ‘From this date, government gateway will be replaced by new solutions, and HMRC is developing its own identity solution for individuals, businesses and agents. Other departments will use Gov.uk Verify for all individual citizen services.’

The blog post was subsequently amended and is less blunt about HMRC’s intentions.

Howes-Roberts wrote: ‘In addition, we’re exploring options around other government departments also using this replacement service. This would be restricted to business and agent-facing services only as Cabinet Office requires all other departments to use Gov.uk Verify: the cross-government service for any citizen-facing services where customers need to prove their identity.’

Howes-Roberts said he is working through the detail with his team right now and working closely with other departments. 

‘There is much the current government gateway service does well and we’ll be looking to take forward into a new solution. But we also know we can provide a more agile, flexible and secure set of services, and at lower cost,’ he said.

An HMRC spokesperson said the tax authority would still use Verify for services accessed by individual tax payers.

‘HMRC customers, as well as customers for other government departments, will be able to continue using Verify to access their accounts. There are no plans to change this currently.

‘On Government Gateway, we have agreed with DWP to take on responsibility for the service, with a goal to build the next version. Unlike Verify, this will be used by business and agent-facing services only, rather than individuals.’

HMRC’s digital blog is here.