Immigration Law

British Government Begins Issuing ID Card To Foreign Nationals

By Robert Kraft

The Associated Press reports that the British government is issuing ID card to foreign nationals. The program will start with roughly 50,000 foreign students and spouses of permanent residents. This is a little frightening for those of us who don't entirely trust what governments might do with the information on national ID cards. Here are excerpts from the article:

Government officials say the cards should provide a tamperproof way to determine a person's true identity and whether they are eligible to work in Britain. They say they will be more accurate and harder to forge than passports.

Opposition lawmakers say it will be costly and unproductive, and privacy advocates complain that the British government is compiling an unprecedented database.

"This is a huge infringement of our privacy," said Mairi Clare Rogers, a spokeswoman for the National Council for Civil Liberties.

The cards will contain a computer chip with fingerprint information and other data, including date of birth and nationality. Each will cost $45.

The last time Britain had ID cards was at the end of World War II.

Other foreign nationals living and working in Britain will not be immediately affected, but they will eventually need cards as the program is expanded.

 

Full post as published by Immigration Law Answers Blog on November 26, 2008 (boomark / email).