The information commissioner Richard Thomas has told the
Home Office that he is becoming increasingly alarmed about its
plans for a compulsory biometric national identity
card.
The scheme goes way beyond initial plans for a plastic ID card and
now marks a fundamental shift in the way the government collects,
uses and shares personal information about individuals, the data
watchdog said last week.
Thomas said he was concerned that the government had failed to
spell out the objectives of the £3.1bn ID card programme and had
left issues surrounding enrolment, maintenance, verification and
card manufacturing unresolved.
"Unless we are certain of the rigour of the application procedure,
it is difficult to be confident that any system will workÉ The
consequences for individuals arising from potential failures should
not be underestimated," he said.
Thomas said that to comply with data protection principles, the
government had to show why there was a pressing need for ID cards
and explain how ID cards would be used in practice to combat
terrorism.
He voiced concern that the scheme would give government agencies
wide access to personal data without giving the public the right to
check the accuracy of their register entries.
Private sector firms could build up a picture of individuals'
day-to-day activities by demanding access to the population
register in return for supplying services, Thomas warned.
He urged the government to appoint an independent body to oversee
the scheme under the authority of Parliament. The government's
plans for an ID card commissioner fell well short of the level of
supervision required.