[no2id-supporters] NO2ID Newsletter No.24

[no2id-supporters-admin at no2id.net]

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NO2ID NEWSLETTER - Supporter's Newsletter No.24 - 14th July 2005

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++ NO2ID PLEDGE NEARS TARGET

The NO2ID pledge has now been signed by over 9,700 people, less than 300 short
of it's target, just one month after it was started. That means that we now
have raised over £97,000+ for a legal defence fund should the ID bill become
law. The pledge will remain open until 9th October so please encourage others
to sign up.

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++ WHAT YOU CAN DO
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+ 1. SIGN OUR PLEDGE
Please, if you can, make your pledge at http://www.pledgebank.com/refuse or by
texting 'pledge refuse' to 60022 [standard text rate].
Pass on or promote this message/link to as many sympathetic people and groups,
mailing lists, bulletin boards and publications as you can *without spamming*.

+ 2. CONTINUE TO LOBBY/WRITE TO YOUR MP
The Identity Cards Bill will return to the commons for a 3rd Reading sometime
after the summer recess. We call on  all supporters to write to or lobby/speak
to your MP (in constituency surgeries) and encourage them to (a) vote against
the Bill, (b) if they won't vote against to absent themselves from the vote,
and (c) if they oppose the scheme to sign EDM 263 against Identity Cards now.
Fax Westminster MPs - http://www.faxyourmp.com/
Early Day Motion(EDM) 263
http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=28464

+ 3. HELP US BY JOINING NO2ID / DONATING
All of our campaigners are volunteers but the materials and equipment we use
cost money.  So please:
Join NO2ID, if you are not already a paid-up member. Hundreds already have.
(There's a membership form at http://www.no2id.net/downloads/membForm.pdf)
Paying anything over £15 p.a. means you qualify as a member - though most
members give a monthly amount.  Regular giving is the best way to help the
campaign.  For obvious reasons, we do need to know each member's name, postal
address (including postcode) and e-mail address, but we will not voluntarily
give personal details to any outside organisation.
OR
Donate some money towards campaign expenses, we need your help.
Thank you (in advance) for your contribution. Together we can beat this.
NO2ID, Box 412, 78 Marylebone High Street, LONDON W1U 5AP

+ 4. GET INVOLVED WITH LOCAL GROUPS
We now have 70 local groups up and down the country. Please get in touch with
your local group if you can help out locally. See
http://www.no2id.net/localGroups

* We also maintain a list of things you can do on our website at
http://www.no2id.net/getInvolved/other.php

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++ CAMPAIGN MATERIALS

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+ NO2ID T-SHIRTS - NEW STOCK
We now have availability of NO2ID T-shirts, in two designs and a choice of
black or white.
Price £10, sizes: Mens - XXL, XL, L, M, S.  Womens - XL, L/M, M/S
see www.NO2ID.net/getInvolved/shop.php

+ POSTERS AND LEAFLETS
We have also received new stock of our posters, ideal for use on stalls in
windows or advertising events, showing the NO2ID logos on a white background
on tough gloss paper.  (A2 and A3 size available). We also have the Stuart
Smith, "HOW to WIN..." guide and car-window stickers.
For the Stuart Smith guide and/or a car-window sticker send an A4 SAE to NO2ID
(address at bottom of newsletter).
Donations are encouraged for posters, stickers, etc, but not obligatory.


+ CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS
We need someone to help with pack and despatch in the south bank office on
Saturday mornings.  We also need people with experience of office work who can
spare regular days or half-days in the week to do basic admin and clerical
activities.
Contact office at no2id.net

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++ WHAT JUST HAPPENED?
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+ ID CARDS BILL COMMITTEE STAGE

The Identity Cards Bill has now entered the Committee Stage, where a committee
of MPs examine the bill clause by clause. At least that's the theory. When the
previous ID cards bill was in committee (in January) 10 groups of amendments
were missed, with a further six clauses not considered. This was because of a
guillotine motion introduced by the government to rush the legislation
through. Once again they have a similar motion that means the Committee Stage
must be completed by next Thursday(21st July).

The committee will then produce a report, which will be allowed just one hour
of debate in the commons. The Third Reading of the bill is limited to a single
day.

No date has yet been set for the Third Reading which will be after the summer
recess (21 July - 10 October).

Read transcripts of the Committee Stage debates:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmsciden.htm

+ HACKNEY LABOUR PARTY SAYS "NO TO IDENTITY CARDS"

Hackney North and Stoke Newington Labour Party has voted against the
Government's plans for  Identity Cards and a national identity database,
calling on MP Diane Abbott to oppose them (she has already voted against them
in the bill's 2nd reading on 28th June), and affiliating to the national NO2ID
Campaign. The motion was passed unopposed.

+ PRESIDENCY OF EU - UK PROPOSE FINGERPRINTING EVERYONE

Statewatch reports:
"The UK Presidency of the Council of the European Union (the 25 governments)
has put forward a proposal that all ID cards in the EU should have biometrics,
that is, fingerprints on them."
See http://www.statewatch.org/news/2005/jul/07eu-id-bio-plan.htm

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++ WHAT'S NEXT
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+ 19 July Brighton & Hove NO2ID meeting - "Make Brunswick & Regency an ID card
free Zone"

Tuesday, 19 July 2005, 7.00pm at Mad Hatter cafe, near Waitrose on the corner
of Montpelier Road and Western Road, Brighton.
The meeting will be addressed by speaker from the NO2ID campaign and then be
opened up for local residents, councillors and trade unionists with the aim to
organise a network of resistance to ID cards and the National Identity
Register in the Brunswick and Regency areas of Brighton & Hove.
More details: brighton at no2id.net

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++ "ID" In the News
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+ UK EU presidency aims for Europe-wide biometric ID card
The UK is using its Presidency of the Council of the European Union to push
for the adoption of biometric ID cards and associated standards across the
whole of the EU.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/13/uk_eu_id_proposal/

+ Government to be quizzed over UK address database
The parliamentary-industry group European Information Society Group (Eurim)
will this week question the government on who will take ownership of a
national address database and how it will be managed.
http://management.silicon.com/government/0,39024677,39150244,00.htm

+ UK biometric ID card morphs into £30 'passport lite'
The Home Office appears to have invented a £30 'Passport Lite' - possibly
accidentally, given that a severe decline in the numbers of people paying for
the full-price passport would make its ID card costings looks even more
implausible.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/08/id_card_as_passport/

+ Identity Cards: The Movie
The Home Office has released a public information film to press the case for a
national identity scheme in the face of mounting concern about the plans.
http://www.egovmonitor.com/node/1841

+ PA Consulting paid £12m for ID cards scheme
Costs of developing ID cards reaches a huge £17m with consulting firm paid
£12m, according to exclusive figures obtained under the Freedom of Information
Act
http://tinyurl.co.uk/m89q

+  ID cards would not have helped, says Clarke
Identity cards would not have prevented the bombings, Charles Clarke, the Home
Secretary, said last week as the Conservatives and Lib Dems made clear the
atrocities had not weakened their strong opposition.
http://news.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/07/09/npoll209.xml

+ So, Mr Clarke, if ID cards won't save lives, why are you wasting billions on
them?
Home Secretary Charles Clarke has admitted that the Government's controversial
ID card proposals would not have saved dozens of lives in the London terror
attacks.
http://tinyurl.co.uk/0cbc

+ Clarke's ID card cost laundry starts to break surface
Growing public concern over the cost of ID cards forced price concessions of
sorts from Home Secretary but leave the Home Office facing the prospect of an
ever-widening money hole as costs climb.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/05/id_laundry_analysis/print.html

(Please send me any items of interest you encounter - Editor)
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Publication details:  (c) NO2ID 2005 - This document may be freely
redistributed in one-to-one communications or physical copies as long as
it is reproduced in its entirety including this notice. It may not be
mass-mailed without the prior permission of NO2ID.

NO2ID, Box No.412, 78 Marylebone High Street, LONDON W1U 5AP