Businesses reacted with scepticism to therelaunch of its national identity
scheme.
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said
that government polls showed that 60% of those asked still
supported ID cards, despite the losses of hundreds of laptops
and
the personal details of millions of families.
But industry observers have reacted with caution.
Roger Wiltshire, secretary-general of the
British Air
Transport Association, whose members will be among the first UK
citizens compelled to use an ID card, described the relaunch as a
"half-baked and extremely dubious PR initiative".
The Confederation of British
Industry said, "One sticking point is the requirement on the
private sector to provide information that can be used to verify
data held on the national registry, without making clear who will
be liable for the accuracy of the information and how it will be
used. The government must address this as a matter of urgency if it
wants to build confidence in the scheme. There is also widespread
unease about the government's ability to handle the vast quantities
of sensitive data on the registry."
The
British
Bankers' Association said that while banks would probably
accept a government identity card as one of the proofs of identity,
it would not be the only acceptable proof. "As far as I know, we
haven't even been asked about installing biometric readers at
tills," said a spokeswomen.
The National Union of
Students said, "They say that the card will be 'voluntary', but
those students who decide not to have an ID card may encounter
difficulties when applying for student loans and bank accounts.
Student loans are an essential service, so we have to question just
how voluntary this system will be in practice. We would also be
concerned for the safety of students' personal information if they
were coerced into entering the ID card system in this way."
But the most devastating critique of the government's plans is
implicit in the
independent review the government commissioned and then delayed
publishing for almost a year.
James Crosby, who wrote the review, told Computer Weekly what
weighed most in his mind was achieving fast, widespread take-up of
the scheme. Based on successful examples of "universal" identity
schemes elsewhere, he set out 10 principles that he said government
should follow.
If
Smith's speech and the delivery plan published yesterday are
any guide, the government looks set to ignore Sir James'
principles.
ID cards will be targeted first at non-EU nationals who wish to
live and work in the UK.
The Home Office said, "After a pilot project in the spring, 10%
of foreign nationals will be issued with identity cards by 2009/10
50% will receive identity cards by 2011/12, with 90% coverage by
2014/15."
Next in line are young people, especially students, and those
the government can compel to have the card, such as airside airport
workers, and people who work with children. Its self-imposed
deadline for total enrolment is 2017.
But James said no scheme driven by national security interests
and cost savings would enjoy rapid take-up and pointed out that
compulsion would not necessarily translate into use. He backed a
consumer-oriented scheme, where people could assert their identity
quickly and confidently, to give the government what it wanted
anyway, and without compulsion.
Smith said the new delivery plan "allows for the pace of
introduction to be set by consumer demand, minimising the cost to
the taxpayer".
A Home Office spokesperson said it
had incorporated lessons from the Crosby report into the delivery
plan. "We welcome Sir James Crosby's report," he said. "The Home
Office was closely involved in the considerations of the public
private forum on identity. The Home Secretary met with Sir James
during the course of the forum's progress to talk further about
their considerations and likely recommendations. We will carefully
consider the impact each of the recommendations would have for the
scheme. Already the work of the forum has influenced government
thinking on the scheme as it was partly as a result of the forum's
work that we have now moved towards a more consumer-led approach to
command public trust in a national identity scheme."
The Crosby Principles
1. The purpose of any national ID card scheme should be
restricted to enabling citizens to assert their identity with ease
and confidence.
2. The scheme's governance should be designed to inspire the
highest level of trust among citizens.
3. The amount of data stored should be minimised.
4. Citizens should "own" their entry on any register.
5. Enrolment processes should vary between individuals and
change over time.
6. The scheme should be capable of being rolled out at
speed.
7. The scheme's systems should be closely aligned to those of
the banks.
8. Citizens should be able to rely on their cards being replaced
and their identity being repaired quickly and efficiently.
9. Enrolment and any tokens should be provided free of
charge.
10. The market should provide a key role in delivering a
universal ID assurance scheme.