Good Idea. should have RFID, so when someone walks into a store, the
store people know who is there.

Blair wins vote on UK identity cards



February 14, 2006 - 6:49AM
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Britain moved a step closer towards introducing compulsory identity
cards when the government cleared its first hurdle in a crucial round
of votes in parliament.

Unlike many other countries, Britain does not have a system of
national identity cards and Blair's government wants to bring in a
high-tech scheme which would store biometric information such as
fingerprint, iris and face recognition data.

The government argues the cards will help combat identity theft, abuse
of the state benefits system, illegal immigration, organised crime and
terrorism.

Blair's Labour Party has a majority in parliament of 64 seats but also
has around 30 rebels who often oppose the government, meaning the
prime minister rarely has all his lawmakers behind him on
controversial legislation.

Blair is also facing a resurgent Conservative opposition under new
leader David Cameron and this week's parliamentary votes are seen as
key to proving he can still get laws passed.

Failure would increase calls for Blair to hand over to his would-be
successor, Finance Minister Gordon Brown.

The House of Commons, parliament's lower chamber, passed the key
clause in the identity cards bill by 310 votes to 279.

The measure was first approved in October but blocked in the upper
house last month.

The government won a further series of votes on the details of the ID
card scheme with majorities of between 51 and 61 votes. Lawmakers
agreed that the government must report on its cost every six months
for the first 10 years of the scheme.

The proposed law will return to the upper house for more debate.

Blair's next big test comes on Wednesday when lawmakers vote on
anti-terrorism legislation. The bill scraped through parliament by one
vote last time but was also halted by the upper house.

Blair had planned to return from a trip to South Africa for the vote
but his plane suffered engine trouble as it was taking off on Sunday
night and he was forced to stay put.

"The essential issue here is the right to your own identity," Brown
told BBC radio.

"I think we are starting to convince people. I think the public are
more convinced than some of the politicians in the House of Commons,"
he said.

But opponents say the scheme is unworkable, costly and undermines
civil liberties.

Under a compromise agreed by the government, the cards will not be
compulsory for everyone initially. But anyone applying for or renewing
a passport will have to pay for an identity card as well from 2008.

In the key vote, the parliament rejected an amendment which would have
made the scheme entirely voluntary.

Even if Blair survives the vote on anti-terrorism measures, he is
still fighting Labour rebels who disagree with plans to reform
education, a central plank of his third term policy agenda.
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=A9 2006 AAP