ID cards
The response from GB. What a load of Bo**ocks
Government’s response
We are committed to working with the aviation industry to develop an identity card scheme for airside workers which helps maintain public confidence in the security of our airports and deliver greater convenience for employers in fulfilling their legal obligations. We have consulted extensively with the aviation sector to develop and refine our proposals, holding over 50 meetings with aviation stakeholders. We will continue to work closely with the industry going forward.
The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) will begin to issue the first identity cards to airport staff working in the secure airside area from this year. However, these people will not be required to carry the cards with them – indeed, legislation specifically excludes any requirement to do so.
We acknowledge that the aviation industry is already taking action to ensure the integrity of the checks and systems that it has in place, in order to ensure the highest levels of security for airside personnel, as well as for the travelling public. Identity cards will give employers greater assurance of the identity of their employees, allowing them to discharge their legal responsibilities and reduce their exposure to threats. Over time, we want to work with employers to ensure that we can maximise the efficiency of the regulatory regime on them to keep the cost of conducting employee checks to a minimum.
No one can say that identity cards or any other single measure will prevent terrorism, but there can be no doubt that identity cards will help our ability to combat terrorism, and the police and security services support this view. The use of facial and fingerprint biometrics will link individuals securely to a single identity and so will help the police and the security services identify people more reliably. At the same time they will help in disrupting terrorist activity by making it more difficult for potential terrorists to use false or multiple identities. Furthermore, identity cards for foreign nationals will build on existing technology in place to protect the UK from illegal immigration including fingerprint visa checks abroad, which have already identified over 20,000 immigration offenders, and the introduction of electronic border checks.
Further Information