ID Cards: Home Secretary promises to accelerate rollout

In addition to residents of Greater Manchester, who will be able to apply for an Identity card before the end of this year, residents in locations across the North West will be entitled to apply from early next year.

Identity fraud costs the UK economy £1.2 billion on average each year. At a cost of just £30, the identity card will provide a cheap, universal and simple proof of identity, helping protect against ID fraud and acting as an important tool in the fight against organised crime, illegal working and terrorism.

In rolling out identity cards, the Government also intends to focus attention on young people, for whom they will act as a proof of age, helping prove an individual's right to enter premises or buy goods. They will also empower communities tackling anti-social behaviour and crime by allowing local retailers, including pubs and supermarkets, to help ensure they aren't selling restricted goods to those who are underage.

The Home Secretary, said:
'There will be significant benefits to individuals from holding an identity card, which will become the most convenient, secure and affordable way of asserting identity in everyday life. Identity cards will also be valid for travel throughout Europe in place of a British passport.

'That is why I have announced today that I intend to see their introduction speeded up. The benefits are not just for individuals but also for communities where a reliable proof of age will be invaluable in the fight against underage drinking and young people trying to buy knives. But at the same time, these cards will benefit young people who, on average, have to prove their age more than twice as often as adults and I want to make that process simple and secure.'

The Government will also be looking at options which could allow pensioners aged 75 and over to receive an identity card free of charge.

As part of plans to speed up the rollout of identity cards, the Home Secretary has also asked the UK Border Agency to review its successful roll out of compulsory identity cards for foreign nationals to see how it too can be accelerated.

With 50,000 identity cards for foreign nationals already issued to people legally living and working in the UK, the UK Border Agency is helping tackle illegal working and supporting legitimate workers and businesses to play by the rules.

Under current plans, all non EEA foreign nationals coming to the UK for more than six months, or extending their stay here, are to have a card within three years.

The Government has also taken the decision to make identity cards voluntary for airside workers, planned initially at Manchester and London City airports.

Airside workers will continue to be encouraged to obtain an identity card, which they can do for free, making it quicker and simpler for background checks to be carried out to verify an individual's identity as part of the airside pass-issuing process. Obtaining an identity card will also improve the movement of reference checks between employers and airports, creating greater flexibility for employers and staff.

Oversight of the National Identity Service remains an essential part of delivering identity cards and the appointment of an independent Identity Commissioner will be made shortly.

Delivery schedule:

* from 25 November 2008 compulsory identity cards began to be issued to foreign nationals who come to the UK to work or study;
* in the first half of 2009 contracts were awarded for application and enrolment, biometrics storage systems and the production of passports;
* before the end of this year voluntary identity cards will be issued to airside workers - starting with an 18 month evaluation at Manchester and London City airports. Volunteers in Greater Manchester will also be given the chance to enrol for the first identity cards. A further contract will be signed to cover production of cards for the medium term;
* from early 2010, identity cards will be issued on a voluntary basis to residents in the North West; and
* from 2011/12 identity cards will roll out to the wider population on an entirely voluntary basis.