The UK Government is once again considering the implementation of personal identification cards for UK citizens, in the form of Smart Cards. There are no immediate plans to introduce compulsory ID cards, instead the Government is choosing to hope that the population will want to voluntarily carry the cards. The Government’s main aim behind the cards is to enable people to claim state benefits, deal with their tax affairs, get their passports, television licenses, tax disks, and access their medical records. According to a report in The Times newspaper yesterday, the general public are not said to be afraid of the possible implementation of the ID cards, nor the possibility of government departments sharing information held on them. The proposed cards are expected to sit at the heart of a Government white paper expected in the Spring, which will discuss better Government operations.
