LSE ID Card Report

The LSE report on the government's ID card scheme, The Identity Project: an assessment of the UK Identity Cards Bill and its implications, has been published today and has already been rubbished by a government minister on the radio this morning, attempting to get his retaliation in first. Executive summary of the report here,(which runs to just 10 pages compared to the full report at 318).

The preface to the LSE report is written by Richard Thomas, the government's own Information Comissioner. In it he re-iterates his concern at the government's proposals and his belief that the scheme is "disproportionate to the stated objectives behind the introduction of ID cards." He goes on to say that "Eradicating unnecessary personal information and ensuring that individuals, rather than government, have appropriate control over how their personal information is handled, will go a long way towards achieving the essential pre-requisite of establishing a system that inpires public confidence: one where individuals can be identified when they really need to be rather than one which has the intrusive side effect of the government identifying and recording information about how individuals go about their daily lives."

Thomas has been a reasoned critic of the government's proposals from the moment he had examined them in depth but they have totally ignored his concerns. That he has to come out publicly endorsing an independent academic study which is critical of the government's proposals is quite extraordinary. Congratulations to him for having the courage to do so.

The report itself notes six areas of serious concern with the current proposals as well as offering an alternative more workable scheme. From the LSE's own website, the concerns in brief are:

Will the technology work? No scheme on this scale has been undertaken anywhere in the world. Smaller and less ambitious schemes have encountered substantial technological and operational problems that are likely to be amplified in a large-scale national system. The use of biometrics creates particular concerns, because this technology has never been used at such a scale.

Is it legal? In its current form, the Identity Cards Bill appears to be unsafe in law. A number of elements potentially compromise Article 8 (privacy) and Article 14 (discrimination) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The government may also be in breach of law by requiring fingerprints as a pre-requisite for receipt of a passport. The report finds no clear case why the ID card requirements should be bound to internationally recognized requirements on passport documents.

Security The National Data Register will create a very large data pool in one place that could be an enhanced risk in case of unauthorized accesses, hacking or malfunctions.

Citizens' acceptance An identity system that is well-accepted by citizens is likely to be far more successful in use than one that is controversial or raises privacy concerns. For example, it will be critical for realizing public value that citizens want to carry their ID cards with them and to use them in a wide range of settings.

Will ID cards benefit businesses? Compliance with the terms of the ID cards Bill will mean even small firms are likely to have to pay £250 for smartcard readers and other requirements will add to the administrative burdens firms face.

The Executive summary at least should be compulsory reading in secondary school civics (do they still call it "civics" in schools now?) classes all over the country. Likewise concerned citizens of every brand.