Identifying Problems With Identity Cards

EDM number 1396 in 2003-04, proposed by Austin Mitchell on 24/06/2004.

That this House believes the Government should reconsider its proposal for national identity cards, emphasises that it is essential to be clear on the specific uses for which the card is intended, believes that present proposals are catch-all purposes rather than practical possibilities since it is impossible to combine an identity card, an entitlement card, a passport, a weapon against terrorism, and a regulator of immigration and asylum; feels that the Government should specify whether the card must be carried, or produced later on demand, whether it should carry information about rights to work, pensions, benefits or NHS treatment; and further considers the heavy costs implicit in a universal card and the huge database and checking facilities to operate will produce a real dilemma of whether it should be paid by the state, or the citizens; regrets the Government's efforts to stampede support by using fears of terrorism and asylum seekers, neither of which could be controlled by it, and requires a fuller explanation of what biometric information the card will carry, how the information will be stored, checked, and read, and whether and when new technology will outdate information or methods; and in the light of recent debacles with Government database projects warns that the same expensive mistakes are likely on a much bigger scale with a national ID card, and therefore suggests that the Home Secretary should place the proposal in a deep Home Office drawer, rather than an overloaded Government in-tray.

This motion has been signed by a total of 30 MPs.