[no2id-supporters] NO2ID Newsletter No.31

Thu Oct 27 13:14:45 BST 2005

NO2ID NEWSLETTER
Supporter's Newsletter No.31 - 27th October 2005
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* NEW LOOK NEWSLETTER - This is the first edition of our new look
newsletter. We're now sending out in multipart HTML and plain text to
improve readability.

+ NEW PLEDGE - CALLING ALL ID REFUSENIKS

To mark the passage of the Identity Cards Bill into the Lords, Simon Davies
(Chairman of NO2ID and veteran of ID card battles across the globe) has
launched a new pledge at http://www.pledgebank.com/refuse2

"I will refuse to register for an ID card and will donate £10 to a legal
defence fund but only if 15,000 other people will also make this same
pledge."

When Phil Booth, NO2ID National Coordinator, made the same pledge in the
summer almost 10,000 people signed within the first month. NO2ID want to
show the government and media that public opposition to their ID proposals
is growing stronger than ever, so we need even more people to sign even
faster than before. Don't wait - this pledge will close more quickly then
the last one.

If you didn't sign our previous pledge and absolutely refuse to go along
with the government's plan to fingerprint you and scan your eyes, compel you
to be registered and numbered so you can be tracked throughout your life by
a card, and charge you for the privilege(!) then visit
http://www.pledgebank.com/refuse2 and sign the pledge now. And don't forget
to tell all your friends.

If you did sign the last pledge, then we still need you to spread the word
and encourage as many people as possible to pledge their refusal to comply.
If all 11,368 refuseniks found just one other person *this week* who would
sign up, we'd be over 2/3rds of our way to the target. And don't forget that
you can get people to sign up by texting 'pledge refuse2' to 60022 [normal
rates apply] on their mobile phone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

++ 3RD READING REPORT
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

++ GOVERNMENT WIN ID CARDS BILL 3RD READING , WITH REDUCED MAJORITY++

Last Tuesday (18th October) the House of Commons approved the Identity Cards
Bill by 309 votes to 284, reducing the government's 66-strong majority to
just 25. 22 Labour, 20 Conservative and 2 Lib Dem MPs abstained.

The bill now moves on to the House of Lords (for its 2nd Reading there) on
Monday (31st October) where it is expected to get a rougher ride. However,
the government can now use the Parliament Act to force the bill through if
they wish, though when asked by Charles Kennedy the day after 3rd Reading
the Prime Minister refused to say whether the government would use it.

During the Report Stage debates and 3rd Reading a total of 32 Labour
backbenchers took part in six separate rebellions against the government.
But as revolts.co.uk pointed out: "the government survived comfortably by
repeating the whipping tactics of the last two Parliaments: encouraging
Labour backbenchers not to oppose all aspects of the bill at the same time".

The government once again used a guillotine motion to curtail parliamentary
discussion. As Richard Shepherd MP put it: "the government rule by
guillotine, not by winning arguments in debate".

Robert Marshall-Andrews MP said: "Not since the Domesday book in 1068 have
we seen anything like it. That was a system of registration put into effect
by the Normans-or the new Normans, as I suspect they were known at the
time."

Matthew Taylor MP pointed out that the use of a person's identity number in
a multitude of databases could lead to a "system for allowing the collection
of an almost infinite amount of information about individuals-by the
government".

Tim Farron MP said: "In passing the bill and allowing this provision to
remain unamended, we are providing the apparatus for authoritarianism."

Outside of parliament intrepid NO2ID supporters braved the October air, with
only mock ID cards to hide their modesty, to make the point that even those
with nothing to hide have plenty to fear from the impending Big Brother
state.

Watch the debate at:
http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Console.aspx?Encoding=3350&StartAt=2005-10-18T1
4:43:08
Transcript at: http://theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=2005-10-18c.708.0
Details of voting: http://www.revolts.co.uk/Govt Majority Slashed to 25 over
ID Cards Bill.pdf
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

++ WHAT YOU CAN DO
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

+ 1. SIGN OUR NEW 'REFUSE 2' PLEDGE
Please, if you can, make your pledge at http://www.pledgebank.com/refuse2 or
by texting 'pledge refuse2' 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. LOBBY A LORD
Ideally you should write to any Lords with whom you may have a connection. A
list of Lords with e-mail addresses can be found at
http://www.spuc.org.uk/lobbying/mcb. Lords can also be written to by post at
the House of Lords, London SW1A 0PW. All male peers (except Dukes and
Archbishops) should be addressed as "My Lord", all female peers simply as
"Dear Lady [surname]". Dukes and Archbishops should be addressed as "Your
Grace"
Lords Lobbying Tips: http://resource.nusonline.co.uk/v1/pdf/3913.pdf
How to address Lords:
http://www.parliament.uk/directories/house_of_lords_information_office/addre
ss.cfm

+ 3. PROMOTE NO2ID'S FLASH ANIMATIONS
Send a link to our comedy flash animation (http://eclectech.co.uk/swizz.php)
and our new ID cards quiz (http://www.no2id.net/IDSchemes/quiz.php) to all
of your friends and others at http://www.no2id.net/downloads/flashcomp.php

+ 4. HELP US BY JOINING NO2ID / DONATING
Please join NO2ID, if you are not already a paid-up member.
(There's a membership form at http://www.no2id.net/downloads/membForm.pdf)
OR
Donate some money towards campaign expenses.
NO2ID, Box 412, 78 Marylebone High Street, LONDON W1U 5AP

+ 5. GET INVOLVED WITH LOCAL GROUPS
Organise leafleting, a stall or a public meeting to educate the public about
the database that lies behind the proposed ID card scheme.
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

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

++ WHAT'S NEXT?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

+ 31st OCTOBER, HOUSE OF LORDS 2ND READING

The Identity Cards Bill has already had a formal 1st Reading in the Lords.
The 2nd Reading is next Monday and is a general debate. If the bill passes
2nd Reading then it will progress later this year to detailed discussions
with amendments at the committee and report stages, followed by a concluding
debate at the 3rd Reading.

+ 28th OCTOBER, SIMON DAVIES LECTURE, LEEDS

Friday, 28th October 2005 , 12-2pm at Leeds Met Headingley Campus, LS6.
Identity Cards: The Thin End of the Wedge (Part of Together for Peace
festival lead-in)
A lecture by Simon Davies (Director of Privacy International).
For more info see
(http://www.networkleeds.com/index.pl?z=39&s=363&ym=200510&ev=6332)or
contact Steve Wright (s.t.wright at leedsmet.ac.uk).

+ 28th OCTOBER, ID CARD MEETING IN STROUD, ORGANISED BY STROUD GREEN PARTY

Friday 28th October: between 7.30 and 9.30pm at Star Anise Arts Cafe at the
Painswick Inn, Gloucester Street, Stroud. The cafe doors open at 7.00 to
reduce queuing time for coffee and cakes.
'ID Cards: nothing to hide, nothing to fear?' David Gould from NO2ID will be
speaking about ID cards and his recent confontation with Home Office
Minsiter Andy Burnham.

+ 28th OCTOBER, G8 / NO2ID BENEFIT, SUMAC CENTRE, NOTTINGHAM

Friday, 28th October 2005, 8-11pm at Sumac Centre, 245 Gladstone Street,
Nottingham NG7 6HX (£2.50 recommended donation).
InTheSameBoat Productions presents a live music benefit at the Sumac Centre,
for the G8 and N02ID campaigns, with FourDumbKids, Cape Canaveral, Jonathan
Beckett
For more details see: http://www.veggies.org.uk/arc/event.php?ref=443

+ 3rd NOVEMBER, NO2ID PUBLIC MEETING BIRMINGHAM

Tuesday, 3rd November 2005, venue and times to be confirmed.
Speakers will include Claire Short MP and MI5 whistleblower David Shaylor.
See http://www.no2id.net/news/events.php for further details.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

++ WHAT JUST HAPPENED?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

+ JOINT COMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS & CONSTITUTIONAL COMMITTE RELEASE SCATHING
REPORTS

Both the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) and the House of Lords
Constitution Committee have both produced reports this week that criticise
the government's ID cards bill.

The JCHR report points out a number of areas where they believe the bill
contravenes the Human Rights Act. When the previous committee produced
similar findings in November of last year, the Home Secretary responded: "I
consider that all the powers in the bill are capable of being exercised
compatibly and its human rights compliance has to be judged ultimately by
looking at the bill and all the orders and regulations made under it." So
that's alright then. NO2ID are referenced several times in the JCHR report &
our submission is reproduced in full in the Appendix.

The chairman of the House of Lords Constitution Committee, Lord Holme of
Cheltenham, said: "Contrary to the Government's assertions, the Committee
reaffirms that the bill fundamentally alters the relationship between
citizens and the State. The Committee firmly reject Government claims that,
in respect of privacy, ID cards are comparable to driving licenses and
passports."

Constitution Committee:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200506/ldselect/ldconst/44/4402.h
tm
JCHR:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/jt200506/jtselect/jtrights/48/4807.
htm

+ CLARKE APPOINTS "GOVERNMENT SPIN DOCTOR" TO OVERSEE ID CARD TECHNICAL
COMMITTEE

Charles Clark has this week appointed Chief Scientific Adviser Sir David
King to head up a new committee to oversee technological aspects of the ID
cards scheme. In a Guardian article, also this week, George Monbiot said of
King: "I fear that the government's chief scientist is mutating into its
chief spin doctor."

+ THINGS YOU CAN DO WITH £30

On the 13th October Charles Clarke announced that: "It will be affordable to
set a charge of £30 at current prices for a stand-alone ID card which is
valid for 10 years." Actually most people will still be conned out of at
least £93. The total cost of the scheme is still projected to be £5.8
billion, getting on for £150 per person. So where's the rest of the money
coming from? Well, an FT report says that the Home Secretary "hopes to meet
any additional costs from within his own budget and from other departments
such as health, education and work and pensions that he believes could
benefit from the savings the scheme is expected to generate."

So, other departments can be relieved of money that they would otherwise
spend on actual public services, to fund the Home Office's white elephant.
Previously the government claimed that ID cards and the National Identity
Register would be financed out of new spending. Now they acknowledge that
the money will be taken away from actual public services.

+ OXFORD NO2ID PUBLIC MEETING

NO2ID Oxford held a public meeting at Oxford town hall on a October 13th,
which saw Green, Conservative and Liberal Democrat politicians united in
their opposition to ID cards. Ed Vaisey MP warned that the government are
proposing to use "technology that is relatively untried and untested on a
scale that has never before been envisaged".

Anna Ellis, a senior database administrator for a multinational blue chip
company, gave a presentation explaining the technical deficiencies of the
proposed card. Anna drew attention to the possibility of Identity theft
(fingerprints can be spoofed), and warned that it would be possible for
"criminal gangs" to scan the contactless cards without the owners' knowing
it.

+ BIOMETRICS 2005 CONFERENCE - ANIMAL TESTING

The Biometric industry gathered in the shadow of the Houses of Parliament
last week to rub their hands in glee at the riches that await them as the
world goes biometric. The Biometrics 2005 conference and exhibition took
place at Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in Westminster.

Various trade journals and literature was available, such as Smart Card
News, which reveals that "EU legislation has recently mandated the use of
identification techniques for dogs, cats and ferrets travelling into and
between member countries." An eight year transitional period began in
October 2004 allowing pets to have either an ID tattoo or a Radio Frequency
Identification (RFID) transponder injected into the animal. After that only
the RFID transponder will be allowed. UK, Ireland and Malta already require
such technology.

+ SMARTEX SMARTCARD GROUP FOUNDER SPEAKS OUT AGAINST GOVERMENT ID SCHEME

Richard Poynder, founder and chairman of the Smartex Group, has written an
article for 'Keesing Journal of Documents & Identity' which is highly
critical of the government's proposed ID card scheme. Poynder points out
that: "Once people become aware of the full scope for centralised control
that a national database facilitates, dissent will spread beyond the
single-interest libertarian groups who have voiced their disapproval to
date."

+ OXFORD & NOTTINGHM NO2ID GROUPS GAIN OFFICIAL BACKING OF LOCAL MPS

The Nottingham NO2ID group is now officially supported by Alan Simpson, the
Labour MP for Nottingham South. The Oxford Group is backed by Dr Evan Harris
MP (Lib Dem, Oxford West & Abingdon) and Ed Vaizey MP (Con, Wantage).
For more details see http://www.nottingham-no2id.org.uk and
http://www.no2id-oxford.org

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

++ "ID" In the News
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

+ Changes proposed to ID cards plan
Changes to the legislation on ID cards recommended by the House of Lords
could help to address civil liberties concerns raised by the plan.
http://www.computing.co.uk/computing/news/2144794/changes-proposed-id-cards-
plan

+ No mandate for this attack
Votes on the terrorism bill, like last week's on ID cards, are likely to
show there is only one institution with the power to stop the government's
assault on civil liberties. That is the unelected House of Lords. It has the
right - even the duty - to do so.
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,9115,1600759,00.html

+ Chief scientist to put ID biometrics under the microscope
The Government's top scientist is to head a panel of experts examining
whether the biometrics underpinning the proposed ID card actually work.
http://portal.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/10/26/nid26.xml
&sSheet=/news/2005/10/26/ixhome.html

+ Is it a passport, an ID card, or a fiddle? A minister explains
Do we have no choice, because the world is moving to biometric ID? And how
is it that despite costing £93 for combined ID and passport and £30 for just
ID, the ID card is somehow not costing us anything really?
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/10/25/id_3rd_reading_analysis/

+ Search warning over ID cards plan
Plans to force foreign nationals to register for identity cards would lead
to black and Asian Britons being stopped more often, a parliamentary
committee has been warned.
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/politics.cfm?id=2140642005

+ Biometric ID - are they counting on your fingers?
Jerry Fishenden added Microsoft to the ranks of those critical of the UK ID
card scheme, worrying that it could actually increase ID fraud.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/10/24/bio_test_accuracy_letters/

+ ID checks 'may damage pharmacy relationships'
Asking patients for personal identification before allowing them to collect
Schedule 2 Controlled Drugs may damage the patient-pharmacy relationship,
says the profession's negotiating body.
http://www.dotpharmacy.com/pickweek.html#10

+ Iris recognition needs work, says UKPS
The UK Passport Service (UKPS) claims that iris recognition is still not an
accurate enough method of biometric identification for mainstream
deployment, following extensive trials of the technology.
http://news.cnet.co.uk/gadgets/0,39029672,39193410,00.htm

+ ID cards give 'audit trail' of holders' lives
Under Schedule 1 of the bill, the register will store, "particulars of every
occasion on which information contained in the individual's entry has been
provided to a person". That "audit trail" will record the details of every
occasion on which a person presents their card to be checked.
http://comment.independent.co.uk/letters/article320783.ece

+ Microsoft slams UK ID card database
Microsoft's national technology officer has attacked the UK government's
plans for a centralised database supporting the proposed national ID card
scheme.
http://www.pcw.co.uk/vnunet/news/2144113/microsoft-slams-uk-id-card

+ U-turn on child protection database
Plans for a multi-million pound computer system containing every child's
details are "too complex to be effective", the chairman of the inquiry into
the death of Victoria Climbié said today.
http://society.guardian.co.uk/children/story/0,1074,1595561,00.html?gusrc=ti
cker-103704

+ South Africa pushes electronic ID cards
The South African government is planning to speed up the introduction of
electronic ID cards and passports, according to reports, in an effort to
crack down on identity fraud.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/10/26/south_africa_electronic_id/

(Please send me any items of interest you encounter -
Editor(newsletter at no2id.net) )
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Publication details: © NO2ID 2005 - This document may be freely
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mass-mailed without the prior permission of NO2ID.

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