ID cards - 0.1 per cent 'express interest'

[Pollik]

http://blogs.manchestereveningnews.co.u ... t_868.html

ID cards - 0.1 per cent 'express interest'
The government is still being hit by a raft of questions about its now-voluntary plans for ID cards for British citizens -a scheme to be piloted in Greater Manchester.

The latest batch was from John Leech, the Lib Dem MP for Manchester Withington.

In response, Home Office minister Meg Hillier has disclosed that:

a) Fees for cards for 2011 and beyond have 'yet to be agreed';
b) 'Almost 12,000 people' had registered an interest in ID cards by November 2;
c) 17 per cent of those are from Greater Manchester.

I make that about 2,040 people, or about 0.1 per cent of the Greater Manchester population. And the scheme is due to start later in the year.

Overwhelming. The percentage is even lower, looked at nationally.

[Alison]

Indeed interest in the 'voluntary cards' is extremely low.

But the Government will not be concerned if none of us choose to have the CARDS. They have never been that bothered about us having the cards. They are solely concerned with the database. That is what it has been about all the time. A database that will track us from birth to death.

From next year, you MUST apply for registration on the database if you want a passport, but you can choose to have a card if you want one. That is to be followed by other controlled things such as driving licences and eventually access to state benefits are likely to require registration (though not a card) and CRB checks and so on.

The cards themselves are a minor part of this.

Alison

[Swarmy]

I really do need to sort out my passport renewal before then...

[emma]

You raise a key point Alison.

Does anybody know what is the Conservative party take on "the database"?

If I understand correctly, the I.D. card issue may likely be (at least partially) abandonned if the Tories get in next year, but is the database still going to be steamrollered out?

I'm not sure that all of us changing our passports this year (rather than next) will change the fundamental issue...: The economic (& technological) "wall" being built around the UK (and Europe, the US...) to keep people OUT.

[Alison]

Does anybody know what is the Conservative party take on "the database"?

I have it in writing that they intend to abolish the entire scheme.

[emma]

Thanks Alison.

(Looks like a rerun of Poll Tax politics )

It will be interesting to see if they keep to their word...

[PaulaJaneThomas]

The Tories have always viewed it as waste of money. Given the current economic conditions I expect it to be an early casualty.

[Holly1948]

Thanks Alison.
(Looks like a rerun of Poll Tax politics )
It will be interesting to see if they keep to their word...

Or of 1952 general election in which Churchill displaced Attlee based on a promise to abolish Identity Cards - which he did five months later.

Also rations, which Churchill phased out. As my mother said, when butter was rationed we got only a little each week. Then it came off rationing and we could not afford to buy any at all.

[Alison]

There is a danger that the systems that existed previously will already have been dismantled so that it is impossible to actually get rid of the actual database. Then we can only hope that they will disable it in a way that it cannot be resurrected in the future, while providing the functionality for the issue and control of passports.

We can only wait and see at the moment.

[Pollik]

so that it is impossible to actually get rid of the actual database

A worrying thought.

Time and time again, it is demonstrated that bodies cannot be trusted with personal information. In olden days, the mistakes would simply have resulted in a small problem - not too bad. But now those same mistakes put millions of people at risk.

Today's story about T_Mobile being a case in point. What is the point of putting safeguards in place that depend on people's honesty in the first place? Elements of criminal legislation are equally daft.