Traitor Blair has said that compulsary ID cards are nothing to do with civil liberties and everything to do with modernity.

He says that the Home Office will be publishing an “action plan” in December to “explore the benefits” we will get from ID cards in 10 years time.  Yes, I had to read it a couple of times before I was sure I’d read it right too: the Home Office, having spent millions on the scheme already and introduced new legislation and started handing out the cards with passports, hasn’t even explored the benefits of the cards yet!

People from outside the European Federation wanting to work or have access to services in England after 2008 will have to have the cards but they won’t be compulsary until 2010 for British citizens and the North British government has already said that it won’t require ID cards for public services north of the border.  Not for any particular reason, just because they have their own government and they can do what they want with public services.

Bliar also says that ID cards will help tackle illegal immigration, terrorism and identity fraud.  The Home Office has already admitted that the 7/7 terrorist attack on London wouldn’t have been prevented by ID cards and the Madrid bombers, of course, were actually carrying ID cards when they blew up their trains.

He dismissed criticsm of the cost of the scheme, saying that we have to introduce biometric passports regardless.  He doesn’t say that this is because of yet another EU directive imposed on us by unelected bureaucrats on the continent with the bill falling at the feet of the English taxpayer.  Again.

David Davis, the Conservative Shadow Home Secretary, points out that 95% of benefit fraud – one of the things they British government claim ID cards will prevent – is caused by people lying about their circumstances and not by identity fraud.  The only way ID cards will have an impact on this is if they were used in conjunction with a massive database storing information on our movements, what services we use and where, when and on what we spend our money … oh, they’ve already thought of that already haven’t they?

Microsoft reckons that the ID card scheme will trigger a massive identity fraud offensive.  Anyone managing to break into the system (the “secure” chip on the front of the new biometric passports has already been hacked) will have access to everyone’s details – their DNA, fingerprints, iris scans, date of birth, nationality, ethnicity, name, address, financial transactions, benefits they receive, etc. – all in one place.