Sunday Times – ID cards doomed, say officials
TONY BLAIR’S flagship identity cards scheme is set to fail and may not be introduced for a generation, according to leaked Whitehall e-mails from the senior officials responsible for the multi-billion-pound project.
The problems are so serious that ministers have been forced to draw up plans for a scaled-down “face-saving” version to meet their pledge of phasing in the cards from 2008.
However, civil servants say there is no evidence that even this compromise is “remotely feasible” and accuse ministers of “ignoring reality” by pressing ahead.
The government seems to want to push through their Identity Card scheme through by any means possible even if it means by way of a much reduced version. They will probably phase it in through the backdoor by way of renewals of passports and ease back on the introduction of ID cards for non-passport holders.
Give this it might be wise for people to renew their passports now even if they have many years before they expire. Renew for freedom from the Identity Register.
