Proposed Introduction of National ID cards in the UK
By pumpkinjam
@pumpkinjam (8876)
United Kingdom
February 3, 2008 1:42am CST
Do you think this is a good or bad idea? Would you be willing to carry one?
I can think of reasons for and against.
For: ID if you don't have a passport or driving licence and you don't have to carry around lots of different bits because everything is on one card.
Against: All your personal information would be stored in one place making it easier for your identity to be stolen. Currently, you need 3 different pieces of data to prove who you are sometimes but if you had that one ID card stolen, that's your whole life stolen. They would be too expensive and the government intend to charge everyone for having them but want to make them compulsory. Some people don't have things like passports and driving licences because they can't afford them so what happens with people who can not afford to get an ID card? What about homeless people, etc. Then there is the problem of how to go about issuing them because no doubt criminals will infiltrate the system before the cards are issued and will already have false information to "prove" they are someone else.
I don't like the idea of the government being able to track my every move and I certainly don't like the idea of them having more information about me than they need.
2 people like this
7 responses
@ctrymuziklvr (11057)
• United States
3 Feb 08
I'm pretty sure Hilary Clinton is thinking about doing something like this in the US if she wins the presidency race. Or even worse there has been talk of implanting a chip in all US citizens...something stupid like that. If this is something the government wants then they shouldn't charge citizens for them. It's their idea so they should carry the financial burden.
@pumpkinjam (8876)
• United Kingdom
3 Feb 08
That's true. Governments take enough from all of us as it is, they shouldn't expect us to foot the bill for yet another one of their not-so-good ideas.
1 person likes this
@nannacroc (4049)
•
3 Feb 08
At first I thought ID cards would be a good idea. As I have neither driving licence or passport it would be a good way of proving my identity. On reflection and seeing that your NI number and bank details would be on the cards I have changed my opinion. Government agencies have recently lost the data of millions of people so how can we trust them to look after the data on these cards. You are right when you say that it will be even easier for criminals to steal identities.
@dorypanda (1601)
•
4 Feb 08
I do actually agree with you and would like to add, what I think is a very valid point:So far the government have LOST data concerning everyone who claims child benefit, including the names and birth dates of the children, the government have also lost the details of several learner drivers.
So, why should we trust them not to lose ALL the rest of our details? If they've got our credit card, bank and various other personal details all in one place, how do we know they're not going to lose those too? That's rather worrying.
1 person likes this
@pumpkinjam (8876)
• United Kingdom
4 Feb 08
That is very worrying. A simple ID card is basically a good idea but we can already get those (eg. citizen card to prove you are 12, 15, 18) but it's not just losing the data that is the problem because we all know that governments and their agencies not only can't be trusted to protect our information but it wouldn't even need to be passed on for it to be misused.
1 person likes this
@wolfie34 (26770)
• United Kingdom
19 Mar 08
It's another stealth tax by the government, the money they will rake in through these damn cards, and that's all it boils down to, it's a blatant cheek and how are we expected to pay for them? Fresh air? Sorry I am anti National ID cards, we have survived this long without them, it's just a way of making more money and for what? What are they going to do with it and how are they going to implement it? Look how they've lost records and confidential information in the past? They are making a rod for their own backs and the sooner they scrap the idea the better.
1 person likes this
@pumpkinjam (8876)
• United Kingdom
20 Mar 08
I think you're the first to mention the money the government will make from it. That is all it is. We already have to supply so much ID for absolutely everything. I was just looking at what you have to do to get a passport and I am lucky that I was born before 1983 so I only have to supply my own birth certificate but for my children, I have to supply their full birth certificate along with my own. If we need all that to prove we are British to get something we are getting because we were born here and never been away from here, why on Earth would we need an ID card on top of that? As you say, it is yet another stealth tax which the government expect us to pay for out of the magic money they seem to think we have.
1 person likes this
@jameskempton (145)
•
20 Mar 08
In response to the point about the government knowing too much about you, this is not in my opinion as scary as high tech criminals learning all about you, for example where you spend your money, where you live and work, the time you visit certain shops etc. ID cards are a very bad idea and I would probably leave the UK if I was told I had to have one.
1 person likes this
@jameskempton (145)
•
20 Mar 08
There is something more dangerous than the small risk from people having the physical ID cards stolen from them. It is not very difficult to scan the biometric details from the proposed ID cards using remote devices from metres away. You could walk past a high tech ID thief in the street and have your identity absorbed without them even having to turn their head to look at you. ID cards will be dawn of a new era for high tech crime. I imagine the gadgets to absorb ID from the cards would be on sale on the net for less than lets say £300?
1 person likes this
@Modestah (11177)
• United States
20 Mar 08
sigh, have we learned nothing? didn't we all use to shudder at the fact that the KGB used to demand "your papers" is this not where the national id system is heading. I am afraid Great Britain has become a leader and example for others to follow - towards things to remove privacy and privilege. Our Lady was profound in saying that the Errors of Russia will infect the world.
1 person likes this
