A Wanstead man has become the first person in London to enrol for a national ID card for 16 to 24-year-olds
The Home Office started issuing ID cards to 16-24-year-old UK passport holders in London today, but this has attracted almost no coverage. James Ranger writes in the Wanstead and Woodford Guardian:
THE first young person in London to apply for a new national ID card has completed the enrolment process in central London.
Peter Fawcett, 21, of Lorne Gardens in Wanstead, had his fingerprints recorded and a photgraph (sic) taken at the London Passport Office in Victoria this morning (Monday February 8).
Mr Fawcett, who has lived in Wanstead his whole life and went to Davenant Foundation School in Loughton, said: “I was keen from the outset to get a National Identity Card.
“I will be travelling to Holland next month and the convenience of taking the credit card-sized ID card with me in my wallet for use as a travel document far outweighs taking my passport with me.
“My passport is also getting really battered by me carrying it around as proof of age. With a national identity card, I can leave my passport at home and carry my ID card in my wallet instead.
“If I lose it I only have to pay £30 instead of £77.50 to have it replaced.”
February 8th, 2010 at 17:18
He doesn’t seem to have heard (or been informed by those issuing it to him)that he is unlikely to be able to use it as a form of identification during his travels.
February 8th, 2010 at 18:31
Good luck, you gullible prat – you won’t be allowed on the ferry with that f*cking card – or don’t you read the news?
February 8th, 2010 at 20:07
Mr Fawcett’s comments sound like a government script: he mentions proof of age, travel overseas without having to take his passport with him (he hopes), and that priceless piece of b/s “if you’ve got nothing to hide you’ve got nothing to worry about.” He also seems to have no reservations about the proliferation of CCTV: “Plus if you go into London every day your face is on CCTV pretty much the whole time anyway!” There is no doubt that people, especially young adults, have been groomed by government into accepting things like CCTV, fingerprinting from an early age (eg to get fed in the school canteen or to withdraw a library book) and the notion that the state has the right to a deep knowledge of each citizen.
February 9th, 2010 at 01:36
Is he a Labour party stooge, who only agreed to do it on condition they deleted his detail afterwards?
‘Ha! Right into our trap!’
‘Grrr! What kind of set up do you call this? I’m leaving the country.’
‘Yeah, right, fat chance with THAT card, buster!’
‘Brr-r-r-r! WHY are you doing this, to your own citizens??’
‘£30 a punt for one, times 60 million, that’s a lorra lettuce.’
February 9th, 2010 at 07:56
Mr Fawcett also appeared in a BBC report on the ID cards roll-out, and bears a close resemblance to this chap, who doesn’t seem to need any help buying alcohol:
http://burkesworks.livejournal.com/270247.html
February 9th, 2010 at 10:35
Just goes to show how easily people are seduced by convenience. I also think it’s incredibly unfair that this scheme applies to 16-year-olds. Apparently if you’re 16, you’re not old enough to buy sharp objects, drink alcohol, or even vote, but it’s okay to sign yourself up for the National Identity scheme?
February 10th, 2010 at 16:05
This shamefully was not publicised in the media. I did try to get on several radio chat shows, one of them Talk Sport (several times), to warn London youngsters, but they wouldn’t let me on the air. Even though I explained very clearly how important this was. Shame on them. It was not strictly on-topic to what they were discussing (well on second thoughts that’s a moot point: on one occasion the topic was the Economy; and the huge amounts being squandered on this scheme are very relevant to that).
I also wrote about it to the editors of the Mail and Metro newspaper, but I believe they didn’t publish my letter.
February 11th, 2010 at 19:52
I wrote to the evening gazette in teesside and they didn’t seem too bothered. The kid is clearly a very gullible little chav.