Report - Guardian

48 The LSE Identity Project Report: June 2005anyway. We should take the opportunity of that investment to securewider benefits such as those I set out here.” 74This line of reasoning concludes that biometric ID cards are inevitable. TheGovernment is linking the Identity Cards Bill to international standards and obligationson the passport, whilst extending the mandate of the passport into a much largerprogramme, including the management of domestic policy.Having established the background to the international context, the remainder of thissection will explain the nature of these international obligations, other internationalinitiatives on identity, and the way in which other countries are dealing with these samepressures, initiatives, and technologies.Passport Standards: ICAO, the EU, and the USBackgroundFor a number of years the international community has co-operated in increasing thesecurity standards on passports. The UN-level agency responsible for these standards isthe International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). In the late 1990s the ICAOundertook research on the potential uses of biometrics and other forms of digitisation ofpassport information but, in the years that followed, little progress was made.The US Government enlivened the process with the USA-PATRIOT Act, passed by theUS Congress following the events of September 2001. This included a requirement thatthe President certify within two years a biometric technology standard for use inidentifying aliens who sought admission into the US The schedule for itsimplementation was accelerated by a further piece of legislation: the Enhanced BorderSecurity and Visa Entry Reform Act 2002, sections 303 and 307 of which includedseeking international co-operation with this standard:“By October 26, 2004, in order for a country to remain eligible forparticipation in the visa waiver program its government must certifythat it has a program to issue to its nationals machine-readablepassports that are tamper-resistant and which incorporate biometricand authentication identifiers that satisfy the standards of theInternational Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).” 75The Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act created pressure on the VisaWaiver Countries 76 to institute new passports that include biometrics, and alsogenerated momentum for the efforts of the ICAO to formulate a standard.74 ‘ID cards defend the ultimate civil liberty’, Charles Clarke, The Times, December 20, 2004.75 Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act of 2002 - ALDAC No. 1, Telegram from the Secretary ofState to all Diplomatic and Consular Posts, on Executive Order 12958, March 14, 2003,http://travel.state.gov/visa/laws/telegrams/telegrams_1403.html.76 Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy,Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore,Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, United Kingdom.