Report - Guardian

30 The LSE Identity Project Report: June 2005“The issuing of a card does not force anyone to use it, although interms of drivers or passport users, or if services - whether public orprivate - required some proof of identity before expenditure was laidout, without proof of identity and therefore entitlement to do it I doubtwhether non-use of it would last very long.”It is important to keep in mind that the card will be buttressed by a substantial array ofnew state powers and criminal penalties. The Bill creates a score of new offencesincluding refusal to obey an order from the Secretary of State (6(4)), failure to notifyauthorities about a lost, stolen, damaged or defective card (13(1)), failure to renew acard (9(2)), failure to submit to fingerprinting (9(4)(b)), failure to provide informationdemanded by the government (9(4)(d)), failure to attend an interview at a specifiedplace and time (9(4)(a)) and failure to notify the Secretary of State of any change inpersonal circumstances (including change of address) (12(1)). Failure to obey an orderto register or providing false information will also constitute an offence. Penalties rangefrom £1,000 fine to two years imprisonment. A penalty of up to £2,500 can be levied forfailure to attend an appointment for a scan of fingerprints and iris. This fine can berepeated for every subsequent failure to attend.Enforcement of the penaltiesMany of the offences set out in the Bill are civil penalties. Defendants can object to thepenalty by writing to the Home Office, but the Secretary of State has the right toincrease the penalty if they choose to do so (34(3)). People charged in this way can alsoappeal to the courts (35(1)).