Staines: Last Best Hope of Civilisation

To my utter astonishment, our neighbouring local authority has joined the movement of councils refusing to cooperate with the National Identity Register. Spelthorne Borough Council – that’s the area north of the Thames that was taken over from London by Surrey in 1996 – passed a motion on the 13th of December rejecting ID cards in the strongest possible terms.

1) That the proposed scheme will impose costs on the Council itself in terms of ensuring compatibility of operations.
2) That the ID card and database proposals will fundamentally alter the relationship between the state and the individual.
3) That in 2005 the then Home Secretary when asked whether ID cards would have prevented the London terrorist atrocities said, “I doubt it would have made a difference”.
4) That the government’s own Information Commissioner stated that, “The measures in the Bill go well beyond establishing a secure, reliable and trustworthy ID card. The measures in relation to the National Identity Register and data trail of identity checks on individuals risk an unnecessary and disproportionate intrusion into an individual’s privacy.”
This Council resolves to:
a) Take no part in any pilot scheme or feasibility work in relation to the introduction of national identity cards, based upon current Government proposals for such a scheme, unless specifically required to by law.
b) Make it a policy of the Council to ensure that national identity cards will not be required to access Council services or benefits unless specifically required to do so by law.
c) Take no part in the national database unless required to do so by law and protect our residents data to the best of our ability.
d) Oppose the introduction of national identity cards and instructs the Chief Executive to write to the Home Secretary to inform her of Council policy.”
Under Standing Order 18.6 (iii), Councillor Ms P.A. Broom proposed and Councillor C.A. Davis seconded the following amendment:
“This Council notes with concern Her Majesty’s Government’s failure to properly consider criticisms of, or vary, the terms of the Identity Card Act 2006; that this scheme is fundamentally flawed in conception and this will have an irrevocably damaging effect upon all whom it impacts, including all residents of the Borough of Spelthorne and further consideration should be given to consultation with residents.
Further:
1). The scheme will impose wholly disproportionate costs on this Council and other bodies in terms of operational costs and associated implementation costs.
2). The ID card and database will fundamentally change the relationship between the individual and the state.
3). ID cards won’t prevent terrorist attacks.
4). ID cards won’t prevent illegal immigration.
5). ID cards won’t prevent identity fraud.
6). ID cards won’t prevent human trafficking.
7) This Council resolves to:
(a.) Take no part in any pilot scheme or feasibility work in relation to the national Identity Card Scheme unless specifically so required to by law.
(b.) Make it a policy of the Council to ensure national identity cards shall not be required to obtain council benefits or services unless specifically required to by law.
(c.) To take no part in the national database unless required by law.
The amendment was carried.

resolved that the Council
(a.) Take no part in any pilot scheme or feasibility work in relation to the national Identity Card Scheme unless specifically so required to by law.
(b.) Make it a policy of the Council to ensure national identity cards shall not be required to obtain council benefits or services unless specifically required to by law.
(c.) Take no part in the national database unless required by law.

Thanks, Councillors C.V. Strong, P. A. Broom, C. A. Davis, and L.E. Nichols! Even if Staines NO2ID still can’t organise a meeting, we’re getting somewhere. Ipswich, Liverpool, and the Scottish Parliament have refused this month alone, to say nothing of Australia, where they’ve just canned the NIR-clone project Blair-clone John Howard wished on them.

2007 was the year awful government IT delivered; in the same way they used to talk about missiles delivering a nuclear warhead. Finally, it’s become authorised knowledge that really huge databases are risky, that biometric ID doesn’t scale, and all the rest; it’s been a long struggle to break through the layered defence established around the conventional wisdom. First it was only “paranoids” who cared (thanks, Jack Straw – what, you’re not in jail yet?), then we were all incomprehensible computer geeks, and finally it was the truly weird Polly Toynbee/safetyphant position that opposing ID cards made you objectively pro-poverty. Perhaps 2008 can be the year of the bitbucket?