By Jo Best, 7 February 2005 17:00
NEWS The UK is to get its own US-VISIT-style biometric system to record the fingerprints of immigrants coming into the country, the government has announced.
In a move designed to raise the political stakes on the issue of immigration, Home Secretary Charles Clarke announced today that all visa applicants will be fingerprinted once they arrive at UK ports of entry.
The fingerprinting procedure is expected to be in place by 2008.
In addition to the biometric rollout, the UK government will be putting in place 'electronic borders'.
The e-Borders scheme, which begun its trial in December of 2004 on a selected few routes, will run for 39 months and will be replaced with a full implementation at the end of the trial.
The e-Borders system will capture, review and store data about immigrants on travel routes. As well as collecting arrival and departure information, the system will mean carriers will be obliged to submit information about their passengers to the UK authorities before the travellers' arrival.
The names will be cross-referenced against existing databases of banned individuals and passenger name records (PNRs), which hold personal data about the passenger, will be measured against risk scales to determine if the visitor is thought to pose a threat.
The Home Office report into the new immigration policy said: "The database of information and increasing collection of biometric data will make it harder for people to conceal their identity."
Iris scanning will also make an appearance in the e-Borders system. Certain categories of regular traveller will be allowed to pass through immigration faster by giving an iris scan.
The implementation of the biometric technology will start at Heathrow terminals two and four on 28 February, with terminals one and three, both Gatwick terminals, Birmingham, Manchester, and Stansted airports having the technology live by the end of the year.
The report claims the system will be "watertight", despite significant problems with a similar government system.
Clarke also announced that electronic tagging will be used to keep track of immigrants whose applications are turned down.
The controversial scheme will also a points system introduced to favour immigrants with job skills considered vital to the UK, such as teachers and IT workers.
Comments
There are 8 comments. Join the discussion
1. Roger Huffadine
Hummm...
Having a fingerprint, or iris scan, is about as useful as having a person's name when you don't know where they are.
I thought the problem was keeping track of people once they are in the country.
2. Peter Stearn
"Convicts" return. Will my relatives from Australia have to give finger prints before entering the UK?
3. Peter Stearn
With all these issues the common problem seems to be people. Perhaps they should be replaced by machines thereby solving the problem. Just a thought.
4. Peter Stearn
What is this going to do to the tourist industry?
I'm avoiding countries which require biometric data such as the US.
5. Drew Edgar
2008...you're kidding!!!!!!
What's wrong with fingerprinting at the time & place of the Visa application NOW & verifying it BEFORE issuing the Visa & AGAIN upon arrival in England.
The costs incurred should be born by the applicant in advance, NOT by the English taxpayer.
Patently Blair et al are not serious & just blowing hot air.
6. anonymous
I thought the actual problem is illegal immigration.. How would having finger-printed and iris-scanned the tourists help with it? The illegal ones come hidden in trucks or whatever non-checked place ...
Instead of wasting money on the point of entry maybe it would be better to focus on enforcing better employment rules/checks. If it would be very hard/expensive to hire people that do not have a legal right to work, a great deal of illegit immigrants would not arrive anymore.
Do you really think that Mr Bad Criminal is going to arrive in UK via the terminal 4 at Heathrow?
7. anonymous
Well its clearly not about having an effective system, more one that Joe Public can see keeping "The Others" out.
Just another thing to look forward to in terms of unpleasantries at port of entry when I visit my girlfriend in the UK.
I can't help but think this is more US mimicry.
Long gone the days of Empire.
8. Chris Goodman
There is only one way to stop illegal immigration. Stop entry and IMMEDIATELY expel all who try to enter. The carrier or lorry driver who brought them in to be financially responsible for their removal.
All approved and legal immigrants should certainly be fingerprinted and photographed and issued a biometric type ID card to prove their right to be in UK. This would be eventually integrated into the National ID Card scheme.