(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – Most people in Britain would accept a government proposal that would require citizens to apply for a personal identity card, according to a poll by ICM Research for No2ID. 54 per cent of respondents think this measure is a good or very good idea, while 42 per cent disagree.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – Most people in Britain would accept a government proposal that would require citizens to apply for a personal identity card, according to a poll by ICM Research for No2ID. 54 per cent of respondents think this measure is a good or very good idea, while 42 per cent disagree.
In 2006, the House of Commons approved the Identity Cards Act, effectively creating Britain’s National Identity Register (NIR). The NIR is due to store up to 49 different items on everyone living in the country, including fingerprints, DNA, home address and telephone numbers. The legislation stipulates that, starting on 2009, everybody in Britain will hold a "smart" biometric ID card linked to the national register. The card will be required for access to public services such as doctors’ surgeries, unemployment offices, libraries and others.
The program has sparked a national debate on identity protection. Britain is already one of the most surveillance-prone democracies in the world. It is calculated that there are at least five million surveillance cameras in the country, the equivalent of one for every ten people.
According to official data, Britain has already collected DNA from about 4.1 million individuals—or seven per cent of its total population—since 1995. Since 2004, everyone arrested in England and Wales for almost every kind of offence, regardless of guilt, has been logged on the database. Supporters of the NIR say the government’s massive catalogue will help combat crime and maintain national security.
Last month, A.C. Grayling—a well-known British philosopher and professor—criticized the NIR system, saying, "I confidently predict that unless the process is stopped, in 20 years we will have our identity details in a small tag in our ear lobe." Grayling said he asked foreign secretary David Miliband: "What is the difference between that (an identity ear tag) and an Auschwitz-style number tag on your arm?"
Polling Data
The government has proposed the introduction of identity cards that, in combination with your passport, will cost around $163 U.S. From what you have seen or heard do you think that this proposal is a …?
|
Sept. 2007 |
Nov. 2006 |
Jul. 2006 |
|
|
Very good idea |
14% |
18% |
12% |
|
Good idea |
40% |
32% |
34% |
|
Bad idea |
25% |
26% |
29% |
|
Very bad idea |
17% |
23% |
22% |
|
Don’t know |
4% |
1% |
3% |
Source: ICM Research / No2ID
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,006 British adults, conducted on Sept. 5 and Sept. 6, 2007. No margin of error was provided.
