Report - Guardian

40 The LSE Identity Project Report: June 2005as the Law Society and the British Medical Association (BMA). In fact, the BMA statedin its response to the 2004 consultation document that it was concerned that ID cardsmay exclude vulnerable groups from treatment. They also worried that any healthinformation included on the card would be inadequately protected, possibly allowingother agencies access to that information. The BMA did express support for the ideathat the cards might help ensure that people using the NHS were entitled to do so, butdid not want doctors and nurses to be required to police access to health services. 62A variety of other opposing views from the public included concerns about: privacy,costs, accuracy, function creep, biometrics, disclosure, racism, enforcement,applicability to foreign nationals, technological weakness, and ineffectiveness for thestated goals.Consultation impactThe Home Office has frequently said that it has consulted widely. Each consultationreport has summarised its efforts to comply with the rules for government consultations.In some areas of consultation – for example, whether or not medical information shouldbe on the card – it seems to have genuinely weighed competing views and fostereddebate. But in response the Home Office, in listing the 51 categories of information thedatabase may hold, has ruled nothing out.In terms of the main components of the legislation – the national database, thepermanent identifying number, the biometric smartcard – the Home Office has notaltered its proposals since the first consultation document was issued, back in 2002.This can be seen by examining the following table, which compares the key clauses ofthe original 2002 consultation document to the 2005 version of the legislation.Table 1 – Comparison between the Government vision before and after consultation.Element Entitlement card consultation 2003 Final legislation May2005Nationalidentificationregister (thedatabase)“a central database (‘the central register’) capable of coveringall of the resident population of the UK. The central registerwould hold core personal information which is commonly usedby all service providers such as name and address” (p16)Bill createsRegistrationnumber (requiresthat everyindividual be givena unique number)Biometrics(requiresindividuals tosubmit tofingerprinting andother means ofidentification suchas facial or irisscan)“Any card scheme would have to be administered by a databasewhich would require each person registered on the system tohave some form of unique personal number or identifier.” (p23)“Comments are invited on whether an entitlement card schemeshould include the recording of biometric information withparticular regard to the cost, feasibility and acceptability of thethree most likely options (fingerprints, iris patterns and facialrecognition).“The Government would like to hear the views of potentialpartners on how a nation-wide network of easily accessiblebiometric recording devices could be established and operated,how people who are not mobile or who live in sparselypopulated areas could be served and what other value addedservices potential partners might offer.” (p55)Required for everyoneentered in the RegisterBill says “may berecorded”. Regulatoryimpact assessment says“including biometricdata”.62 Available at http://www.bma.org.uk/ap.nsf/Content/IdentityCards