Monday, November 14, 2005
ID Cards And The National Database - A Step Too Far.
Fear the database, not the card, writes Phillip Johnston in The Telegraph
The ID card bill goes to the House of Lords this week. It's down to them to scupper this awful erosion of civil liberties.
The idea that civil liberties are not inhibited by their introduction is no longer advanced by any sensible person. Furthermore, they will do little to reduce crime, nothing to stop suicide bombers, will be useless against illegal immigrants because foreigners do not need them, and of doubtful value against fraud. They will also be costly to introduce and to possess.
The government claim to have a mandate for introducing identity cards, because the bill was included in their manifesto at the last general election.
I don't see that winning the election with less than one third of the popular vote is a mandate for anything so serious as this.
The Bill contains powers for 51 different classes of information to be put into the database and to impose fines if we do not keep the details up to date.
The database will reject perfectly law-abiding people because the technology has difficulties with certain biometrics, such as brown eyes or bald heads. If this happens, to the annoyance of potentially hundreds of thousands of people who will have paid for the privilege of being denied access to services to which they are entitled, it will not be long before it is proposed to capture everyone's DNA to reduce the chance of false matches.
This is not about protecting our identities but about placing them at the disposal of the state and sundry other organisations that will have access to them. There has never been so grandiose a scheme as this anywhere in the world.
And there never should be, ever.
The Telegraph
£40 Billion Quid For A Piece Of Plastic?
The ID card bill goes to the House of Lords this week. It's down to them to scupper this awful erosion of civil liberties.
The idea that civil liberties are not inhibited by their introduction is no longer advanced by any sensible person. Furthermore, they will do little to reduce crime, nothing to stop suicide bombers, will be useless against illegal immigrants because foreigners do not need them, and of doubtful value against fraud. They will also be costly to introduce and to possess.
The government claim to have a mandate for introducing identity cards, because the bill was included in their manifesto at the last general election.
I don't see that winning the election with less than one third of the popular vote is a mandate for anything so serious as this.
The Bill contains powers for 51 different classes of information to be put into the database and to impose fines if we do not keep the details up to date.
The database will reject perfectly law-abiding people because the technology has difficulties with certain biometrics, such as brown eyes or bald heads. If this happens, to the annoyance of potentially hundreds of thousands of people who will have paid for the privilege of being denied access to services to which they are entitled, it will not be long before it is proposed to capture everyone's DNA to reduce the chance of false matches.
This is not about protecting our identities but about placing them at the disposal of the state and sundry other organisations that will have access to them. There has never been so grandiose a scheme as this anywhere in the world.
And there never should be, ever.
The Telegraph
£40 Billion Quid For A Piece Of Plastic?
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It's like all those sci-fi nightmares coming true.
Mr. Orwell is probably turning in his grave, but very smug with it.
Next it will be sedatives in the water. But then us in the Highlands on the private water supplies will be safe. Oh well, they'll have to resort to tampering with the porridge oats.
Kats :0)
Mr. Orwell is probably turning in his grave, but very smug with it.
Next it will be sedatives in the water. But then us in the Highlands on the private water supplies will be safe. Oh well, they'll have to resort to tampering with the porridge oats.
Kats :0)
Thanks Kats. It really is all getting horrible, isn't it?
I'll go to jail before I let them touch MY porridge!
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I'll go to jail before I let them touch MY porridge!
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