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Saudi Arabia
13. Lawrie Quinn (Scarborough and Whitby): What recent representations he has received about travel advice for UK citizens travelling to Saudi Arabia. [137409]
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr. Jack Straw): On 24 October, I agreed changes to Foreign Office travel advice to Saudi Arabia to say that we believe that
- "terrorists may be in the final phases of planning attacks".
I have sent heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of the victims, and a message to that effect to Prince al-Saud, the Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister. The British ambassador in Riyadh, Sherard Cowper-Coles, to whom I spoke yesterday, and his staff, will remain in close contact with the Saudi authorities about this.
Lawrie Quinn : I am sure that all hon. Members want to associate themselves with the actions taken by the Foreign Secretary following the deplorable attack at the weekend. Given the travel advice to British nationals, can he update the House on the effectiveness of that advice? How will it impinge on commercial activities between the two kingdoms?
Mr. Straw: Terrorist attacks are designed to disrupt the economies and ordinary life of the countries in which they take place. That is an inevitable consequence of the recent attacks in Saudi Arabia. That said, the Saudi authorities are doing everything they can to detect and deter those terrorists. There is a large expatriate British population in Saudi Arabia, as well as a great number of visitors. Our travel advice is constantly updated. We take it very seriously indeed. It can only be as good as the intelligence we receive, and all the time we have to set a balance between ensuring that, above all, proper warning is given, as we were able to give on 24 October in respect of the information that we had received, while, at the same time, not doing the terrorists' job for them, which is to bring normal life completely to a halt.
Dr. Julian Lewis (New Forest, East): I congratulate the Foreign Secretary and his intelligence sources on their timely action. Does he agree that one reason why Saudi Arabia is suffering is the fact that it is now seriously addressing the terrorist problem in its midst? Will he do everything he can to encourage the Saudi authorities not to be deterred by those terrorist responses, because only when the cancer is cut out will it be safe for people to travel to that country and to live in the countries of the middle east?
Mr. Straw: I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for what he says. I am in absolutely no doubt of the overwhelming determination of the Saudi Government and the Saudi authorities to detect the terrorists who committed those outrages in order to deter others. Significantly, this action has been condemned in unqualified terms by senior religious leaders in Saudi Arabia, which is a message not only to those in Saudi, but across the whole Islamic world.
Israel
14. Mr. Mark Lazarowicz (Edinburgh, North and Leith): What recent discussions he has had with the Israeli Government about the building of the security wall. [137410]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr. Bill Rammell): On a number of occasions, my right hon. Friends the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary have made clear to the Israeli Prime Minister and Foreign Minister our concerns about the route of the fence. It should not be built in the occupied territory. Baroness Symons raised the matter with the Israeli Foreign Minister during her visit to Israel on 30 September. Indeed, we have taken numerous other opportunities to raise this critical concern.
Mr. Lazarowicz : I welcome my hon. Friend's clear statement on the Government's behalf about the construction of the wall, but he will know that the continued construction of a separation wall, as well as inflicting misery on the Palestinians, particularly those living near the wall, is also jeopardising whatever slim hopes are left for a middle east peace process. In the light of that, will he tell the House what the Government are doing to try to take forward the middle east peace process?
Mr. Rammell: I thank my hon. Friend for that question. I would not wish to underestimate the fact that we are gravely concerned about the prospects for peace
in the middle east. In that regard, it is vital that both sides realise how much is at stake. We certainly remain fundamentally committed to the road map. It is the only mechanism that we can see for the issue to be resolved. If such a structure did not exist, it would have to be invented. It is therefore critical that the Palestinian Authority make efforts to stop the terrorists and, at the same time, that the Israelis commit, through parallel moves, to tackling settlements, the fence, freedom of movement and the halting of extra-judicial killings.
Richard Ottaway (Croydon, South): The Minister rightly says that he is fully committed to the success of the road map. Does he accept that, in the view of many people, it will not succeed without a major diplomatic initiative? It must be properly resourced, and there must be full commitment on the part of a major worldwide institution, such as the United Nations or the European Union, rather than the current rather under-resourced effort.
Mr. Rammell: The implementation of the road map remains a critical diplomatic priority for the Government. We raise it at every opportunity. A strong United States-led commitment to the road map-based process is also critical. I believe that that commitment is there; certainly the case for it has not changed. Additionally, we need a strong role for the Quartet—closely following road map implementation through the reports of monitors, and making an extra effort when it detects problems or deficiencies.
Let me reassure the hon. Gentleman and the House that we consider this matter hugely important, and take every opportunity to press it forward diplomatically.
Identity Cards
12.30 pm
The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mr. David Blunkett): With permission, Mr. Speaker, I shall make a statement on identity cards and the publication of an explanatory paper, a copy of which is available in the Vote Office.
The Government have decided to begin the process of building a base for a national compulsory identity card scheme. We intend to proceed incrementally, starting by establishing a database and introducing new technology in passports and driving licences. As I explained in the policy paper published in July last year, a scheme of this scale and complexity would always have to be phased. As I said then,
- "it will, by its very nature, take some time should the government decide to legislate to get the card into place."
We are on entirely new territory here. It appears that many people think we are talking about an old-style card with a photograph; we are not. We undertook the consultation because of the enormity and pace of change. Such change makes it increasingly difficult to protect and authenticate the identities of those seeking work or trying to avail themselves of free public services—but the development of specific personal identifiers, known as biometrics, offers us an opportunity to do just that. It would mean that identity could not be forged or duplicated. Techniques such as fingerprinting, face recognition and use of the iris allow us to develop a database capable of foiling attempts to duplicate or steal identity. Such developments will enable us to deal with growing threats to the security and prosperity of Britain from identity theft, fraud and illegal migration.
Two developments have emerged since our earlier discussions of identity cards: the changed world in which we are operating, and the introduction of new biometric identifiers. There is almost universal international support for the idea of developing such identifiers. The United States, for instance, is about to introduce a scheme requiring people to have biometric passports if they wish to benefit from existing visa waivers. Those without them will increasingly find themselves exploited and targeted by international criminals. In such circumstances public demand for action would become overwhelming, and without these developments Britain would have missed an opportunity to protect ourselves and promote the best interests of individuals and families.
The security services have indicated to me that they would value improved methods of verifying identity and counteracting the use of multiple identities. It is obvious that terrorist networks would target the countries that had made the least progress in developing the capacity to provide this protection.
All of us know that identity fraud costs us dear. As individuals, as corporate entities and as a nation, we are open to tremendous exploitation. It is therefore common sense to prepare now for the future.
As I have indicated, it would not be possible to issue cards to the whole population through a big bang approach, even if that were desirable. We therefore intend to proceed in two phases. In phase 1, we would begin to issue biometric identifiers through the renewal of passport and driving licences. As I said in the consultation paper last year,
- "as well as being convenient for the general population, building on the driving licence and passport systems would help to spread demand for the new documents and avoid delays in issuing them promptly".
We will move ahead now with all the necessary preparation, but the final decision on a move to the second stage of the scheme, which involves compulsion, will rest with Parliament. Clearly, the Government will only take a step of that magnitude after a rigorous evaluation of the first stage, when we are confident that there is widespread take-up and acceptance of the scheme and that the benefits outweigh costs and the risks.
We would also need to be sure that the concessions were working satisfactorily for those on low incomes and other vulnerable groups. Finally, we would need to be satisfied that all the technical, financial and administrative preparations were in place for the final roll-out in order to deliver the benefits that we have described. Draft legislation will allow further consultation on all these issues.
Parliament would determine under strict criteria what identifiers were necessary on the chip contained in the card and, therefore, what should be held on the database itself. It would not be necessary, for instance, to hold the address of the individual on the face of the card, as with current driving licences, therefore reducing rather than increasing risk.
Let me now turn to a number of issues that I know have been of public concern. In relation to cost, were we to add biometrics to existing identity documents, which I think most people believe is inevitable, we would incur all the expense and the technological development necessary, but without securing the gains. These include clamping down on illegal residents, illegal working and the exploitation of free public services.
The ID card scheme will make it possible to make all these benefits available to those who might not need, or want, a driving licence or passport and who could not otherwise afford such an identity document. We will provide a free card for 16-year-olds, a concessionary charge for those on low incomes, including those in retirement, and the option of a lifelong card for those renewing at the age of 75—[Laughter.] Well, under Labour, you live longer.
We are also looking urgently at how benefits in the business and commercial world can further reduce the overall cost, again in a way that would not be possible by updating passports and driving licences.
To avoid accusations of underestimating the cost, we have chosen to build in a substantial contingency. We estimate that the basic cost, over a ten-year period, would be £35. All but a very small amount of that would
be necessary in introducing biometrics in any case. The addition would be in the region of around £4, spread over the ten-year period. We will ensure that the basic cost of a card could be paid for by individuals in a variety of ways. Some people could choose to pay incrementally, through mechanisms such as saving stamps and credits.
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