The House of Lords is threatening to de-rail the
government’s planned ID card plans, after voting against a bill
last night that does not include the exact costs of the
scheme.
It was previously estimated by the London School of Economics
that the ID card scheme could cost over £19bn to implement, with
the government saying it would probably cost no more than half
that.
But without a figure to vote on, the Lords are refusing to budge
and have sent the bill back to the House of Commons.
Last summer, the LSE said the government’s national ID card
scheme could cost up to £19.2bn to implement – more than twice the
government’s current estimate.
The LSE says each card could cost up to £230 to issue.
The government says its current ID card scheme will see the
public having to pay around £93 each for a card.
The LSE says the lowest cost of the government’s plans would be
£10.6bn without any cost over-runs or implementation problems, but
“key uncertainties” mean the cost could rise to £19.2bn.
The LSE’s figures were published after a six-month study into
the proposed ID scheme. A new report from the LSE, however, says
the costs could be even greater and slams the government’s secrecy
over the financial arrangements for the ID card scheme.
The government says that, as it is about to enter a tendering
stage for the cards, it cannot put out full financial
information.