[no2id-supporters] NO2ID Newsletter No.53

Thu Aug 31 15:35:56 BST 2006

You've received this mail by opting-in to the "ID cards news" list, run 
by The no2id Coalition, http://www.no2id.net/

The list information page is 
http://www.no2id.net/mailman/listinfo/no2id-supporters , from which you 
can change your subscription options.  Any problems and you can mail the 
listmasters, on listmaster at no2id.net

    NO2ID
    NO2ID Supporters' Newsletter No. 53 - 31st August 2006

*Contacting us:* Call or email the office - 020-7793-4005 or 
(office at no2id.net). Please do not reply to this email. (The from address 
is the not a working email address)

      25 DOWN - 44 TO GO

Over the summer several new local groups have been established around 
the country. Amongst them we now have groups in 25 of the 69 towns in 
which passport processing centres will open this Autumn. From October 
all first time passport applicants will require a face to face 
interview. These interviews will eventually be extended to all 
applicants, as compulsory registration on the National Identity Register 
is introduced. It is essential that we have a group in each of these 
locations to effectively campaign in the months ahead. There are still 
44 towns where we need a presence. If you live in one of these locations 
please consider helping us by setting up a local group. The remaining 
towns are:

Aberdeen, Andover, Armagh, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Blackburn, Boston, Bury 
St Edmunds, Camborne, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, Coleraine, Crawley, Derby, 
Dover, Dumfries, Exeter, Galashiels, Hastings, Ipswich, Kendal, 
Kilmarnock, Kings Lynn, Lincoln, Liverpool, Luton, Maidstone, 
Middlesbrough, Newport, Northallerton, Northampton, Norwich, Oban, 
Omagh, Peterborough, Scarborough, Shrewsbury, St Austell, Stirling, 
Stoke on Trent, Swansea, Warwick, Wick, Wrexham, Yeovil.

If you can set up a local group in one of these towns then please 
contact us at (office at no2id.net). A local group can start with just one 
person but we will help you to grow.

      What's next?

        New Local Groups

We now have a local groups in Barnstaple, Hemel Hepstead, and Harrow. To 
find out more contact barnstaple at no2id.net, hemel.hempstead at no2id.net or 
harrow at no2id.net <mailto:harrow at no2id.net>. We still need many more 
local groups particularly in the locations of the new 69 passport 
processing centres that are opening this autumn.

        Party conference season - Volunteers required

We need volunteers to help at the forthcoming party conferences in 
Manchester (Labour 24th-28th Sept), Bournemouth (Tory 1st-4th Oct), and 
Brighton (LibDem 16th-21st Sept) and Hove (Green 21st-24th Sept). We 
also intend to cover Perth (Scottish National Party 11th-14th Oct) and 
Swansea (Plaid Cymru 21st-24th Sept). Presence is important. Even a 
couple hours handing out leaflets to delegates is well worth while. In 
Manchester, there will be much more fun. Contact us at office at no2id.net 
if you can spare some time.

        Writing to trade journals

In a previous newsletter we suggested that supporters wrote to local 
papers in the summer when news is not at a peak and many have to great 
effect. Writing to trade and interest groups can get through to even 
more people - 'First Voice' for instance, which is the bimonthly journal 
of the Federation of Small Businesses, has a circulation of approaching 
200,000. One of NO2ID's affiliates, the Association of British Drivers, 
provided readers of its members' magazine with an update on the campaign 
against ID cards and a plug for our 'Renew For Freedom' campaign.

        12th September NO2ID Volunteers Meeting Central London - 'The
        European Dimension'

Tuesday, 12th September at 7.00pm in the Brockway Hall at Conway Hall, 
25 Red Lion Square, London WC1 (nearest tube: Holborn). All are welcome 
to NO2ID's next regular volunteers' meeting. The meeting will be on the 
theme of ID cards and the EU. The meeting is free to attend but we will 
be asking for donations to help cover the cost of the room hire.

        New Barnstaple NO2ID group needs your help - meeting 12th or
        13th September

A new NO2ID group is being established in Barnstaple to raise awareness 
before a passport processing centre is opened there this autumn. Group 
co-ordinator Paul Haines told us: "The response has been good and we are 
also receiving strong support from our Liberal MP and the Green Party. 
As yet trades unions and other bodies have failed to respond to our 
invitations, maybe because it's the holiday season. We will be meeting 
in Barnstaple on 11th or 12th September.  If you live in North Devon and 
would like to help, please contact barnstaple at no2id.net and I'll get 
back to you. If you have any contacts in the area who might like to 
attend, pass the word on to them."

        September NO2ID Cambridge Campaign stall

Cambridge NO2ID will be running street stalls outside the Guildhall, 
Cambridge, from 10am onwards on Saturday 2nd and Saturday 23rd 
September. 
Location:(http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=cb2+3qj&ie=UTF8&ll=52.204786,0.119251&spn=0.003971,0.012167&om=1). 
Drop round to collect a badge and car sticker, or just to say "Hello". 
Volunteers to help run the stall also welcome. Contact Andrew Watson via 
cambridge at no2id.net, or on 07710 469624.

        Cambridge NO2ID - Student volunteers needed

Cambridge NO2ID is preparing to spread the word about government ID card 
legislation to students arriving for the new term at both Anglia Ruskin 
University and the University of Cambridge. If you're studying at either 
University, and would like to help publicise NO2ID to your fellow 
students, please contact cambridge at no2id.net as soon as possible (and 
preferably before term starts).

        3rd & 4th September  - Inverness NO2ID Campaign stall

NO2ID Inverness will have a campaign stall on the 3rd & 4th Sept at the 
Glamis Castle Country Fair
See http://www.no2id-scotland.net/local/inverness.html

        4th September NO2ID Shrewsbury Initial Planning Meeting

Monday 4th September 8.15pm at the Inn on the Green, Bank Farm Road, 
Radbrook Green, Shrewsbury, SY3 6DU. The pub is next to the Radbrook 
Green shopping centre, and there is plenty of parking. The function room 
has been booked - inside the pub and turn right. See 
(www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?lat=52.6968&lon=-2.7754&scale=5000&icon=x). 
For more details contact shrewsbury at no2id.net

        5th September - NO2ID Glasgow Meeting

Tuesday, 5th September at 7:30pm in Mono. Alternative arrangements: If 
for any reason Mono is not suitable then we will instead go to Laurie's 
across the road. Everyone is very welcome to attend.
Map: http://www.no2id-scotland.net/glasgow/meeting.html

        5th September - Aberystwyth NO2ID Meeting

Tuesday, 5th September 8-9pm, venue to be confirmed. We'll be organising 
our video petition, giving away badges and car stickers and deciding on 
our strategy to recruit volunteers over the coming months. All are 
welcome. For more information see http://aberno2id.blogspot.com/

        6th September - Manchester NO2ID Flyering

Wednesday 6th September, 5:30pm - 6:30pm: Oxford Road Station Flyering. 
we'll be meeting at the bottom of the Oxford Road station approach for 
an hour to raise awareness. See http://manchester.no2id.net/ for more 
information.

        9th September - Manchester NO2ID - Oldham Day of Action

Saturday, 9th September, 1pm - 3pm: We'll be taking our NO2ID mission 
out to the people of Oldham for a few hours on Saturday 9th September. 
We'll meet at Manchester Victoria Station at noon for a 12:15 train, or 
at Oldham Station at 12:30pm, ready for a 1pm start. See 
http://manchester.no2id.net/ for more information.

        Saturdays throughout September - Highbury NO2ID stall/leafleting
        - volunteers needed

Highbury NO2ID is trying to run a stall / hand out leaflets on each 
Saturday during September in order promote the 'Renew for Freedom' 
campaign before the 1st October passport changes.  Anyone in the North 
London area who can help out for an hour or so should contact Caroline 
Day at (highbury at no2id.net). The dates planned are Sept 2nd, 9th, 16th, 
23rd.  Times: 11pm to 2-3pm ish. Place: Highbury & Islington tube station.

        1st October - NO2ID Comedy fund raiser gig - "Who do you think
        you are?" at the Hackney Empire

Sunday, 1st October, Hackney Empire, 291 Mare Street, London, E8 1EJ. 
Doors 7.30 pm. Stewart Lee, Paul Sinha (Perrier award nominee 2006), 
Joise Long (Perrier best newcomer 2006), Kevin Eldon, Will Hodgeson 
(Perrier best newcomer 2004), Gary Le Strange (Perrier best newcomner 
2003), Andrew O'Neill, Janie Phayre, Ben Norris with compere Lucy Porter 
and others TBC.
Box Office 020 8985 2424 or book online at www.hackneyempire.co.uk, 
Tickets £12.50

------------------------------------------------------------------------

      What just happened?

        Newly formed Shrewsbury NO2ID make front page news

The newly formed NO2ID group in Shrewsbury are off to a flying start 
after getting NO2ID mentioned on the front page of the Shropshire Star 
on Saturday. The lead story was about the passport processing centre 
opening in Shrewsbury as well as 69 other locations around the country 
in September. The article described ID cards as 'controversial' and 
contained 2 paragraphs about the new NO2ID group. Unfortunately the 
article also saw the passport centre as a source of new jobs. Local 
supporters should write to the paper countering this "any job is a good 
job" sentiment.

        Government to expand data sharing powers

The Ministerial Committee on Data Sharing (MISC31) has decided to alter 
UK Data Protection principles from September. Back in 2002 the Cabinet 
Office's Performance and Innovation Unit (now the Strategy Unit) 
produced a report, Privacy and Data sharing. Following on from this 
report a draft data sharing bill was promised in spring 2004. However 
the bill never appeared and the government has now decided to side-step 
the normal parliamentary process and instead introduce data sharing with 
no public debate or act of parliament. The current policy requires 
public bodies to find a legal justification each time they want to share 
data about individuals. From September, the new data sharing agenda will 
allow public bodies to assume they are free to share citizens' personal 
data with other arms of the state, so long as it is "in the public 
interest". In June 2004 Dr Chris Pounder, editor of 'Data Protection and 
Privacy Practise' warned the Home Affairs committee that the draft ID 
cards bill was "all about service delivery", adding that "if the 
Government wants earnestly a data sharing linkage agenda they should put 
a public consultation document out". The change could break the Council 
of Europe Convention on Data Protection, the EU Framework Directive on 
Data Protection.

        Plans to sell data to marketers could fall foul of EU data
        protection

Gordon Brown's plans to expand the ID cards project, whereby companies 
would pay for access to the national identity register, also look set to 
breach EU data protection laws following a recent EU ruling. In 2004, a 
German citizen complained to the EU Commission about the State of 
Hamburg who had handed over personal data to enterprises, knowing that 
they would use them for direct marketing purposes. The Commission said 
that the Directive did not provide any protection against this but the 
European Ombudsman intervened and the Commission agreed to review its 
assessment. The Ombudsman concluded that the EU Data Protection 
Directive could also provide protection against decisions by public 
authorities to hand over personal data to enterprises, while knowing 
that they would be used for direct marketing purposes.
See http://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/decision/en/042467.htm

        Co-op fingerprint payment system wins award

The Midcounties Co-operative Society have won the 'Most Effective Use of 
IT in Retail' award as part of the Effective IT 2006 awards. The Co-op 
won the award for the introduction of a biometric payment system 'pay by 
touch' which allows shoppers to pay for goods using a fingerprint 
reader. The Co-op are the first retailer in the UK to use such a system. 
Whilst this is not part of the government's identity card scheme it 
represents a worrying step towards normalisation of biometric 
technology. Effectively the co-op are testing the sort of technology 
that the government scheme will use and trying to make it acceptable for 
people to submit to fingerprinting to buy a bottle of milk. This along 
with increased age verification demands/identity checks for young people 
since new licensing laws came into effect in November of last year, 
money laundering legislation, fingerprinting of children by schools and 
the such like are all part of a normalisation process that allows the 
creep towards the total surveillance state.

        More Dutch fines

2,909 fines for failure to show ID were handed out in the Netherlands 
during July. 270 of them were to children aged 14-15. Officially, the 
number of fines imposed since showing ID became compulsory on 1 January 
2005 stood at 91,353 by the end of July 2006. Proportionately, that is 
equivalent to about 350,000 fines in the UK. But Dutch campaigners MMI 
say the real number of ID fines is much higher.

        Belgium to merge ID and health cards

Belgians will soon be asked for their electronic ID cards when using 
health services - for example, when attending clinics or buying 
prescribed medicines. The government has announced that the IDs will 
start taking over the functions of the present electronic health 
insurance entitlement cards around the end of 2008. Health insurance 
information will not be added to the IDs, but will be checked online in 
real time by the insurers. For the time being, the health card system 
will continue to operate in parallel.

        US: Lost in translation? Alabama fingerprinting policy for teachers

A report in US newspaper 'The Demopolis Times' this month details a 
teacher fingerprinting and criminal records checking system in Alabama 
that makes UK Criminal Records Bureau checks look tame. In the report a 
superintendent for Demopolis City Schools said: "Our teachers are 
fingerprinted. Now, teachers that graduate from an Alabama college are 
already fingerprinted before they even start in the state school system. 
The local school system will do fingerprinting on teachers coming in 
from out of state". The superintendent goes on to say: "We reserve the 
right to terminate a person if they have lied about their criminal 
history, and usually we do. As for falsifying educational history, we 
look at that case-by-case. Sometimes we terminate them immediately 
unless they are a contracted employee. In that case, we wait until the 
end of the year. We had one employee lie about their background and, of 
course, they were terminated." Seems a little harsh.
See http://www.demopolistimes.com/articles/2006/08/14/news/news02.txt

------------------------------------------------------------------------

      "ID" in the news

        Children's Index will only devalue parents - Daily Telegraph 31/8/06

The intentions may be honourable, but the solution is both sinister and 
flawed. There are already worries that the index could fall foul of data 
protection legislation, while a challenge under human rights laws looks 
inevitable.
http://tinyurl.co.uk/gg9t

        Baroness criticises ID card proposals - The Herald 29/8/06

Baroness Helena Kennedy, QC, one of Britain's leading defenders of human 
rights law, yesterday lambasted the proposed introduction of ID cards. 
Speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, she said she 
would "go to the wall" rather than accept their introduction in Britain. 
"I am damned if they (the government) will introduce them," she said.
http://www.theherald.co.uk/politics/68949.html

        NHS IT: Unhealthy tale of NAO report - ComputerWeekly 29/8/06

Three draft NAO reports on the NPfIT released to Computer Weekly under 
the Freedom of Information Act show that many of the most serious 
criticisms of the NPfIT were omitted from the final publication. Between 
the drafts there had been a "clearance" process with health officials in 
Whitehall.
http://tinyurl.co.uk/27nm

        Home Office admits to five database breaches - OUT-LAW News, 29/8/06

Security at the British Home Office's Identity and Passport Service 
database has been compromised four times, with individuals' data used 
inappropriately by Home Office employees and contractors. A fifth breach 
has hit a Prison Service database. In three of the cases workers were 
able to access data they had no authority to use and in the fourth a 
worker who did have authority to access data used it inappropriately. 
The fifth case involves a worker accessing the Prison Service sentencing 
database, said a Home Office spokesman.
http://www.out-law.com/page-7239

        Oz 'pseudo-ID card' database racked by identity fraud claims -
        The Register 28/8/06

Australia's citizen database was routinely searched for personal reasons 
by government agency employees, some of whom have been sacked. Police 
are now investigating allegations of identity fraud resulting from the 
security breaches. There were 790 security breaches at government agency 
Centrelink involving 600 staff. Staff were found to have inappropriately 
accessed databases containing citizens' information.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/08/28/oz_id_database_misused/

        Accenture threatens NHS blow - Accountancy Age 28/8/06

The £12bn IT upgrade of the NHS is facing more problems with fears that 
Accenture, the consulting group and the biggest contractor on the 
scheme, may resign from the project. The program is already £6bn over 
budget and more than two years behind schedule. According to reports, 
Accenture is in negotiations with the authorities in a bid to ditch its 
£2bn contract.
http://www.accountancyage.com/2163067

        Fingerprinting plan for pupils angers parents - Sunday Times 27/8/06

A pioneering comprehensive known for progressive, liberal policies has 
upset parents by seeking to fingerprint every one of its 1,500 pupils 
when they return from their summer holidays next week.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-2330367,00.html

        ID card fears as staff hack into Home Office database - Mail on
        Sunday 27/8/06

John Tullett, the technology editor of Secure Computing magazine, said 
the Home Office would be 'naive' to assume that the total of recorded 
breaches reflects the real number of security violations at the 
department. He said: 'The trend in IT crime is towards "silent" breaches 
where very competent criminals get into a system and cover their tracks 
so they can get in again in future, all without the victim ever knowing.'
http://tinyurl.co.uk/krb0

        Blair's ID card plan undermined by security breaches - The
        Scotsman 25/8/06

Tony Blair's plan for a national identity card has been dealt a fresh 
blow by the revelation that several government officials have been 
sacked for breaching security around the databases on which the scheme 
will be based.
http://news.scotsman.com/politics.cfm?id=1258262006

        OGC must reveal findings - SupplyManagement.com 24/8/06

The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) has been ordered to reveal the 
outcome of its reviews of the ID card scheme. The ruling follows Richard 
Thomas, the information commissioner, upholding two complaints made 
against the OGC and the Treasury. The Treasury and the OGC have until 31 
August to appeal against the ruling. If they do not appeal, they have 
until 7 September to disclose the information.
http://www.supplymanagement.co.uk/EDIT/CURRENT_ISSUE_pages/CI_news_item.asp?id=15137

        Europe-wide security net to counter terrorism - The Guardian 17/8/06

EU ministers want airlines to provide advance passenger lists for all 
flights inside Europe as well as in and out of Europe, including 
domestic routes. These will be checked against the "biometric 
identifier" - electronic eye scan or fingerprint - in the passenger's 
passport or identity card when they check in.
http://travel.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1852012,00.html

        HMRC seeks to fingerprint suspects - Accountancy Age 14/8/06

HM Revenue & Customs is seeking to significantly widen its powers to 
include the right to digitally fingerprint suspects. In a new 
consultation document, Criminal Investigation Powers: A Technical 
Consultation Document, the HMRC said the power to use new technologies 
such as digital fingerprint readers would significantly help the 
authority with its investigations. The Revenue is also asking for powers 
to charge or bail suspects.
http://www.financialdirector.co.uk/accountancyage/news/2162270/hmrc-seeks-fingerprint-suspects

        ID card fee could make government a profit - The Sunday Times 6/8/06

Tony Blair's identity card scheme could make up to £11 billion in 
"profits" for the government by imposing a range of additional charges 
on the public, a confidential Home Office memo claims. The document says 
that the "unit cost" at today's prices will be £55 for a card and £90 
for a combined card and passport. The fee for non-British citizens is 
£143. Card holders will also be charged an extra addition £8 for every 
time they need to change their details, to record a change in name, 
marital status or address. Approximately one in ten households move 
house in a single year, and the Home Office would be able to impose 
hefty fines for failing to inform it of changes.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-2300775,00.html

(Please send me any items of interest you encounter - 
Editor(newsletter at no2id.net) )
------------------------------------------------------------------------

      What you can do

You can help us by:

        1. 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

        2. Encouraging friends/family to renew their passport now

The ID Cards Act turns your passport into a one-way ticket to control of 
your identity by the government. In October the price of a passport will 
by nearly 30% to £66. If you renew your passport now you can buy ten 
years of freedom for £51. Encourage others to do the same and promote 
our renew for freedom website http://www.renewforfreedom.org

* We also maintain a list of things you can do on our website at 
http://www.no2id.net/getInvolved/other.php
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Publication details: © NO2ID 2006 - 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 412, 19-21 Crawford Street, LONDON W1H 1PJ
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.no2id.net/pipermail/no2id-supporters/attachments/20060831/0614f120/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: no2id-logo-stnd.JPG
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 8757 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://lists.no2id.net/pipermail/no2id-supporters/attachments/20060831/0614f120/attachment.jpeg>