Wednesday, May 25, 2005

ID Cards reprise

Will ID cards cut illegal immigration, terrorism and identity theft? Spain already has ID cards, but has recently granted an amnesty for illegal immigrants and experienced the full force of terrorism in the Madrid bombings. Spanish ID cards have already failed to achieve two out of three of this Government's goals.

Can ID cards reduce identity theft? The Home Office estimates that identity theft costs £1.3bn a year. That will be an overestimate to support their case, whilst the cost of introducing the scheme is £10bn. Double this figure to £20bn for public sector project management skills and you have the expected true cost. Do ID cards now represent good value for money? Would the money be better spent elsewhere? What about the costs associated with the new crime of ID card theft?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

ID cards will be as effective at preventing terrorism and fraud as draconian firearms licensing and bans have been at stopping gun crime, or speed cameras preventing road accidents....
This is all about extending the scope of the police state, when will people wake up?