- British identity cards will be covered in EU symbols
- By Matthew Hickley
- The Mail Online - UK
- 26/09/2008 Make a Comment
- Contributed by: The Rooster ( 264 articles in 2008 )
Britain's first identity card in more than half a century was unveiled yesterday - and turned out to be covered in EU symbols to satisfy Brussels.
The plastic card, which will be issued to foreign citizens in Britain starting in November, marks the first stage in the Government's ambitious scheme to issue biometric ID cards to all UK residents at a cost of billions of pounds.
But serious questions remain over whether the system will work or bring any practical benefits, and doubts were underlined yesterday as the Conservatives pledged to scrap the entire venture if they win the next General Election.
identity card
ID cards have finally been unveiled - with plenty of EU symbols to satisfy Brussels
Foreigners issued with the cards will not have to show them to get a job or use services such as the NHS and schools, and it remains unclear if or when public services or private firms will install computerised scanners to make use of the costly biometric technology.
The card revealed by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith yesterday features a picture of a bull above EU- style golden stars, while the coloured background is made up of hundreds of tiny letters spelling 'EU'. The bull is a European Union symbol drawn from Greek mythology.
Last night the Home Office admitted that British ID cards had to follow a common design as set out in a Brussels directive to ensure that every card issued by EU states looks similar.
Each card, which will cost £30, carries unique biometric data in the form of a photograph and the individual's fingerprints stored digitally.
Miss Smith said up to 60,000 cards will be distributed by next March to non-EU foreign citizens resident in Britain as they renew their visas. These cardswill be compulsory.
Ministers hope the first cards for British citizens, featuring a slightly different design, will be issued next year, starting with workers in sensitive locations such as ' airside' staff at UK airports. These will also be compulsory, but airport operators and unions object strongly, and could yet scupper the plans.
From 2010 the Government will encourage all young Britons to apply for a card on a voluntary basis, extending the scheme to all citizens and foreign residents from 2011.
The plastic card, which will be issued to foreign citizens in Britain starting in November, marks the first stage in the Government's ambitious scheme to issue biometric ID cards to all UK residents at a cost of billions of pounds.
But serious questions remain over whether the system will work or bring any practical benefits, and doubts were underlined yesterday as the Conservatives pledged to scrap the entire venture if they win the next General Election.
identity card
ID cards have finally been unveiled - with plenty of EU symbols to satisfy Brussels
Foreigners issued with the cards will not have to show them to get a job or use services such as the NHS and schools, and it remains unclear if or when public services or private firms will install computerised scanners to make use of the costly biometric technology.
The card revealed by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith yesterday features a picture of a bull above EU- style golden stars, while the coloured background is made up of hundreds of tiny letters spelling 'EU'. The bull is a European Union symbol drawn from Greek mythology.
Last night the Home Office admitted that British ID cards had to follow a common design as set out in a Brussels directive to ensure that every card issued by EU states looks similar.
Each card, which will cost £30, carries unique biometric data in the form of a photograph and the individual's fingerprints stored digitally.
Miss Smith said up to 60,000 cards will be distributed by next March to non-EU foreign citizens resident in Britain as they renew their visas. These cardswill be compulsory.
Ministers hope the first cards for British citizens, featuring a slightly different design, will be issued next year, starting with workers in sensitive locations such as ' airside' staff at UK airports. These will also be compulsory, but airport operators and unions object strongly, and could yet scupper the plans.
From 2010 the Government will encourage all young Britons to apply for a card on a voluntary basis, extending the scheme to all citizens and foreign residents from 2011.
Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1061761/British-identity-cards-covered-EU-symbols.html
1Will not be visible to public.
2Receive notification of other comments posted for this article. To cease notification after having posted click here.
3To make a link clickable in the comments box enclose in link tags - ie.<link>Link</link>.
4To show an image enclose the image URL in tags - ie.<image>https://fredspage.com/box.jpg</image>. Note: image may be resized if too large
To further have your say, head to our forum Click Here
To contribute a news article Click Here
To view or contribute a Quote Click Here