Identity Cards
| Published date | 01 September 1995 |
| Author | Philip A. Thomas |
| Date | 01 September 1995 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2230.1995.tb02044.x |
REPORTS
Identity
Cards
Philip
A.
Thomas
*
Open a purse or wallet and you are likely to find several signed plastic cards, some
with photographs, that are used frequently within the private sector for financial
transactions, employment, retail and consumer services or entitlement
identification. The public is familiar with
the
technology which underpins identity
cards and the economy is reliant upon card usage. The United Kingdom harbours a
card-carrying culture in which some
100
million plastic cards are in regular use.
When the Home Secretary, Michael Howard, offered the public the long promised
Green Paper on Identity Cards in May
1995,
it
had
been expected that identity cards
would be recommended to help provide reassurance for Tory waverers
as
well
as
a
message that the Government remained capable of promoting innovative legislation.
In addition, it was hoped that identity cards would assist the re-establishment of the
Conservative Party
as
the
natural
protector of law and order. Given the
slim
and
reducing parliamentary majority, it was felt within Government, up to the moment of
dissent from the ‘Euro-rebels’ and right-wing MPs concerned about the ‘nanny’
state,2 that identity cards constituted an achievable parliamentary legislative proposal.
The prime Minister, John Major,
is
known
to
support the introduction of compulsory
identity cards,3
as
did his predecessor, Margaret Thatcher. In addition, John Maples,
Conservative Party deputy chair, argued that the issue would divide the parliamentary
Labour
Party, although currently the opposition is adopting a wait-and-see role
beyond its stated opposition
to
compulsory identity cards.4
The Green Paper presents
an
account of existing identification documentation
which nevertheless is considered unsuitable for general identification purposes. These
documents include birth and marriage certificates, National Health and National
Insurance numbers, British Visitors Passport, driving licence, and the host of
commercial and banking cards. The list
of
benefits to the individual of an identity
card includes overseas travel, proof of age, banking and commercial transactions,
*Professor of Socio-Legal Studies, Cardiff Law School, University of Wales, Cardiff.
I
wish to thank Penny Smith and Adele Winston for their assistance, and my ‘civil liberties’ class who
worked hard to uncover data used in this paper.
1
Cm
2879
(London:
HMSO,
May
1995).
The Home
Office
umsultation
period
closes on
30
September
1995.
2
The
Observer,
16
April
1995.
Sir
Teddy Taylor
MP
stated:
‘The moment you create the fallback position
with
ID
cards,
the danger
is
that we would not fight
so
hard
for our independent controls.’
See
also
the
Report of the Thatcherite Conservative Way
Forward
Group,
Idmtiry
Gards: Freedom Under llrreat
(April
1995):
‘The Government will
be
making a
serious
mistake
if
it ignores warnings such
as
this
and
seeks
to
push
ahead.’
An Bccount of
the
activities of the Member States of the EU concerning identity
cards
is
to
be
found in ‘Memorandum by Liberty
to
the
House
of
Lords
Select Committee on the
European Communities on a proposal by the Presidency of the
European
Union for a joint action on
harmonking means of combatting illegal immigration
and
illegal employment
and
improving the relevant
means of contml’ (Council documents
12336194
of
22
December 1994
and
476412195
of
11
April
1995.
3
llre Guardian,
19
April
1995:
‘Only a fortnight ago Mr Major told the Conservative Central Council
that the introduction of compulsory identity cards was at the top of
his
fight against crime.’
4
A
leaked
government document in November
1994
suggested that identity
cards
should
be
introduced
not on the grounds of public benefit, but to open up
rifts
in the Labour Party
(%
Guardian,
28
November
1994).
‘Either Blair will support our proposals and divide his party,
or
oppose
us
and
show he does not really mean what he says’
(New Statesman,
7
April
1995).
0
The
Modem Law Review Limited
1995
(MLR
585,
September).
Published by
Blackwell
Publishers,
108
Cowley
Road, Oxford
OX4
1JF
and
238
Main
Street,
Cambridge, MA
02142,
USA.
702
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