By Nick Heath, 24 January 2008 17:27
NEWS
Students have launched a stinging attack on UK government proposals to make young people "guinea pigs" for ID cards.
Silicon.com's A to Z of ID Cards
Click on the links below to find out everything you ever needed to know about the government's ID card plans...
A is for Act
B is for Biometrics
C is for Compulsory
D is for Data privacy worries
E is for EDS
F is for Forgery
G is for Government IT
H is for Home Office
I is for Identity and Passport Service
J is for Jury
K is for Hong Kong
L is for London School of Economics
M is for Money
N is for National Identity Register
O is for Other cards
P is for Passports
Q is for Quarter
R is for Refuseniks
S is for Self-destruct
T is for Terrorist
U is for Utility bill
V is for Verification
W is for When
X is for Xenophobia
Y is for Young people
Z is for London Zoo
Leaked Home Office documents reveal teenagers may need an ID card to open a bank account or take out a student loan from 2010 - making them among the first people to have the controversial biometric cards in the UK.
The National Union of Students (NUS) described the revelation in the leaked National Identity Scheme Delivery Strategy document as "morally reprehensible" and said it would bog students down in red tape.
NUS VP for Welfare, Ama Uzowuru, said: "It is extremely disappointing that the government is planning to use students as guinea pigs for this scheme by forcing them to take on ID cards in order to apply for a loan.
"Besides being morally reprehensible, this plan is also completely impractical. The student loan system is complicated enough as it is, without introducing yet another layer of bureaucracy to the process. Many students change address at least once a year and would be obliged to report such changes in their personal circumstances or face a £1,000 fine."
She added: "We would also be concerned for the safety of students' personal information if they were forced to enter the ID card system."
The first UK citizens will get the cards in 2009 when they are given to workers in trusted positions such as airport staff or people working in other sensitive locations, while foreign nationals coming to the UK will be given cards from the end of this year.
The widespread rollout to UK citizens, known as 'Borders phase II', is now slated to begin in 2012 - two years later than indicated in an earlier government action plan.
The document says: "Implementation of identity cards will be benefits led, with the first cards issued to individuals where there is the strongest national or personal benefit. We should issue ID cards to young people to assist them as they open their first bank account, take out a student loan, etc."
Critics of the scheme said the perceived two-year slip in the widespread rollout of the cards is another sign of wavering support among Gordon Brown's government for ID cards.
Shadow immigration minister, Damian Green, said: "The government are clearly trying to introduce the cards by stealth. This is straightforward blackmail and a desperate attempt to bolster a failing policy."
A spokesman for the Identity and Passport Service said this was a draft document, adding: "When developing policy, it is obviously right and logical that our first priority should be to consider where ID cards can be of greatest benefit to the UK and to the individual."
Comments
There are 13 comments. Join the discussion
1. Chris Tolmie
My children have already opened accounts and set up as many services as possible to avoid being forced to carry ID cards - we all used to live in a free country now we don't (CCTV surveillance; ID cards; 2003 licensing Act; even down to stopping the wearing of "b*cks to pm" t-shirts)
2. misceng
"given"??? The reference in the article to people being given cards puzzles me. I understood that there was going to be quite a high charge for these cards so the idea of giving some people them is grossly unfair. I also understood that people were going to be forced to have them so the word "given" seems wrong. I would like an explanation.
3. Karen Challinor
well if hmg wanted to strengthen opposition to the card they picked the right demographic to get it
4. Nick Cole
This is a diasaster and typical of a politically inspired concept where it is driven through regardless of the problems and issues that get raised. Apart from anything else why on earth is it costing so much? How do we know that the original id card is actually to the right person? What happens if the identity thief gets in first? Where are the fallbakc safeguards?
Perhaps if it wasn't so costly at a personal level, and that privacy fears are addressed instead of being dismissed, and civil servants and politicians took clear public responsibility for the cavalier manner with which they treat our data, there may be greater acceptance of whatis actually and probably a perfectly reasonable concept. Especially given that we all have multiple proofs of identity that cost as very little or nothing already and collectively is probably proving who we are much better than a single piece of all purpose plastic, whose provenance will be relied in the face of common sense.
Or perhaps we will get the farcical situation we have with driving licences. The bit of durable plastic and photograph is worthless without the bit of fragile and ultimately forgeable bit of paper.
The current proposal is nothing more than a typical public sector fudge with people doing whatever ridiculous thing ill-and mis-informed blinkered politicians demand.
5. Chris Goodman
What is right and logical is that Government in the shape of Civil Servants should not be helping people in this way. What is right and proper is that young people learn to manage themselves without interference, no matter how well intentioned, from a surfeit of needless civil servants.
6. Chris Stevens
First the Student Tax (errm "Loan") now Id cards. The current bunch of university students seem to be a real bunch of sheep rather than standing up for their rights. If they all personally wrote to their local MP saying "we won't vote for the Labour Candidate at the next elections", they might just find that suddenly Id Cards for Student Bank accounts is not such a favoured idea.
7. Trevor Elliott
Don't let them into a pub without a valid ID card. They will soon be begging for them.
8. Richard Davies
The problem here is that people still like moaning about things, but they never do anything about it!?!? The public I think now agree that the ID Card system should be abandoned...Trouble is that people like my wife always asks me whats the point because your only one person and then don't get involved themselves......If only everyone stood up and said no to this entire scheme, what are the government going to do?
Nothing apart from ditch it like they should have done on day 1. They are supposed to work for us afterall!
Just remember that whilst we carry on discussing these issues...the government are still wasting our hard earned money which I only wish hadn't been spent in the first place.
The government are just so out of touch with society its actually laughable!
9. Radical Meldrew
This is typical of modern day government - seemingly out of touch with real people and real issues whilst secretly pursuing their hidden ambitions regardless of public opinion. What are they on? Thinking about that - they are taking a soft line on drugs.....hmmm!
10. Guy Herbert, General Secretary NO2ID
If you can stand up and say no publicly now, and try persuade your neighbour to do the same, then that's all we need.
By the magic of compound interest, Fibonacci's rabbits, pyramid selling, or whatever you choose to call it, one person can be huundreds pretty soon. Before you know it the refuseniks will be a million strong.
Go to the NO2ID pledge page and get a precise formulation of the simple, non-violent - but very deadly for the scheme - undertaking you need to make.
11. GALLEY SLAVE#41
As present day students are a bunch of wussies the Government will probably get away with it.
But I can't imagine that they would have had any success In my day.
In the 60s and 70s we were mostly a revolutionary lot!
Protesting about everything and anything.
12. Guy Reynolds
Well here we go just as I predicted, HMG say the cards are 'Not' going to be compulsory, but if you don't have you are going to find living in the UK very diffficult because you access to any thing state related is going to be near impossible. Stutdent loans being the tin end of the wedge.
13. Karen Challinor
GALLEY SLAVE #41 - a select few of the students of those days are now the people in power and are the very ones trying to foist this system on the rest of us