Data crisis means ID Scheme should go says Mark Alcock

7.23.40pm GMT Tue 29th Jan 2008

The Government should scrap the costly ID card scheme and instead concentrate on protecting the data it already has rather than collecting more says Cllr Mark Alcock.

Cllr Mark Alcock has decided to voice his concerns after Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg MP published figures showing that 37 million pieces of personal information on UK citizens were lost in 2007, mostly by the Government.

Labour has already passed the law bringing in ID cards and soon most citizens will have to pay for an identity card.

"The expensive identity cards scheme is based on the government storing large amounts of information about each one of us on a central database," said Mark.

"But in 2007 the Government stumbled from one data loss crisis to another. The worst example came in November when the Government lost the personal details of all 25 million families with children. That has put the privacy of every family in Oldham Borough at risk.

"The dangers of putting so much information about every citizen in the UK into one central database are clear to everyone except, it seems, the Government. Ministers are in denial when they argue that the information will be safe and people's privacy will not be undermined.

"I am very pleased that new Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg is leading the battle to end the ID cards scheme. Liberal Democrats in Oldham Borough are right behind him. The plan to make everyone carry a piece of plastic must be buried before it ends up as another expensive government fiasco.

"The scheme will be a bureaucratic nightmare. It will not prevent illegal working. It will not help stop crime or terrorism. If the government really wants to make an impact on crime, terrorism and illegal immigration, the billions of pounds Labour has earmarked for this scheme would be far better spent on more police and intelligence officers.

This would result in another 10,000 Police Officers, 557 of those across Greater Manchester, making a big impact in the fight against crime and anti social behaviour across Oldham Borough.