Parliamentary report flags ID scheme human rights issues

[R.A. Hettinga]

<http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/02/03/id_scheme_echr_concern/print.html>

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 Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/02/03/id_scheme_echr_concern/

Parliamentary report flags ID scheme human rights issues
By John Lettice (john.lettice at theregister.co.uk)
Published Thursday 3rd February 2005 12:27 GMT

Parliament's Joint Committee on Human Rights has flagged a string of
problems the UK's ID Cards Bill has with the European Convention on Human
Rights, which was incorporated into UK law in 1998. The Committee's report
draws Parliament's attention to "a number of serious questions of human
rights compatibility", and it has written a lengthy note to Home Secretary
Charles Clarke asking for answers to 14 of them by next Monday (7th
February).

Asked this morning if the report meant that it was now time to put ID cards
on hold, a spokesman for the Prime Minister said that international
requirements for biometric passports meant there was a need to go down this
route, and that the Prime Minister believed the legislation satisfied the
UK's commitment to international human rights conventions.

This however is clearly not what the Committee believes. It particularly
questions the extent, justification and proportionality of the information
to be held in the National Identity Register, and points to the potential
for information to be recorded there without the individual's consent. It
also notes that the "designated documents" capability will make
registration effectively compulsory for some groups of people, and that the
intent to phase the scheme in may discriminate against some groups subject
to compulsion.

The extent of disclosure of personal information to service providers in
exchange for the delivery of public services and other reasons, and the
capability for the unlimited extension of powers of disclosure are also
flagged. The Government's approach so far to such criticisms of the scheme
has boiled down to stating that it is confident it complies with human
rights law, and that there will be "safeguards". The Committee's letter to
Clarke however demands clear justifications of the purpose of each of the
points of concern, together with detailed explanations of the safeguards.

Some of of this territory has actually been covered during the extremely
brief Committee stage of the Bill, where Minister Des Browne in particular
fleshed out some of the Government's interpretations and intentions. These
are, however, simply what the Government currently says the Bill is
supposed to do and what it intends to do with it, not what the Bill itself
says, and the Bill emerged from Committee largely unamended.

Also on the human rights and freedom theme, the Office of Government
Commerce has responded to Spy Blog's FOIA request
(http://www.spy.org.uk/spyblog/archives/2005/02/ogc_gateway_rev.html) for
publication of its Gateway Reviews of the ID scheme saying it needs a
further 15 working days "to consider the balance of public interest." Spy
Blog notes that this takes any publication neatly beyond the Third Reading
of the Bill in the Commons on 10th February. Coincidentally (?) Minister
Paul Boateng recently replied to a question from LibDem Home Affairs
spokesman Mark Oaten with: "I am currently reviewing whether there is any
Gateway Review or other OGC review which should be published regarding the
identity cards scheme and I will write to the hon. Member as soon as these
considerations are complete." Which would perhaps be the week after next,
Paul?

So over to Charles Clarke. Will he have a response to the Committee on
Human Rights by Monday, and if so, will it be good enough? The Bill will
almost certainly go through the Commons next week anyway, but if the
Government can't make a convincing stab at the human rights angle,
opposition in the Lords is likely to stregthen.
-- 
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R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah at ibuc.com>
The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA
"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
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