ID Cards Sample Article

In the United Kingdom, British citizens will be issued with ID cards for the first time since World War II. The cards became legal after the Queen’s gave her consent to the Identity Cards Act in March 2006.  The cards are due to be introduced between 2009 and 2010, although foreign nations may be issued with cards from mid-2008.

The issue of Identity Cards is a controversial one that keeps rearing its head.  Former Prime Minister Tony Blair struggled with rebellion, negative press, and massive opposition campaigns against his plans for a national identity card.

Blair finally won the vote on ID cards by a narrow margin of 310 votes to 279.  Blair believed that ID cards would help decrease the number of cases of ID fraud in the UK.

Opponents of the cards say that the introduction of ID cards will significantly increase the instances of identity fraud that occur.

ID cards will not be initially compulsory, but it will only be a matter of time before they become mandatory.  Eventually the cards will be required by anyone over the age of 16, or those who have been resident in the UK for more than three months. Full roll out of compulsory ID cards is expected by 2017.

From 2009, airport workers will require an ID card as a condition of employment.  Airport workers believe that they have been unfairly treated and Unite, their union has expressed its concerns to the Government.

The successful introduction of the ID card is seen as a necessary step in the War On Terror.  Cards will be issued by IPS, the Identity and Passport, the new agency that will replace the UK Passport Service.  The cost of the card is expected to be set at around £30.