Identity Cards Bill

House of Commons

Session 2004 - 05
Internet Publications
Other Bills before Parliament

Identity Cards Bill

Identity Cards Bill
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ID cards
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Issue etc. of ID cards
(1)
For the purposes of this Act an ID card is a card which—
(a)
is issued to an individual by the Secretary of State, or as part of or
together with a designated document; and
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(b)
does, as respects that individual, one or both of the things specified in
subsection (2).
(2)
Those things are—
(a)
recording registrable facts about the individual that are already
recorded as part of his entry in the Register;
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(b)
carrying data enabling the card to be used for facilitating the making of
applications for information recorded in a prescribed part of the
individual’s entry in the Register, or for otherwise facilitating the
provision of that information to a person entitled to be provided with it.
(3)
An ID card issued to an individual—
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(a)
must record only the prescribed information;
(b)
must record prescribed parts of it in an encrypted form;
(c)
is valid only for the prescribed period; and
(d)
remains the property of the person issuing it.
(4)
Except in prescribed cases, an ID card must be issued to an individual if he—
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(a)
is entitled to be entered in the Register or, by virtue of section 6, is
required to be so entered; and
(b)
is an individual about whom the prescribed registrable facts are
recorded in the Register.
(5)
In prescribed cases an ID card may be issued to an individual who—
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(a)
is not required to be issued with one; but
(b)
is an individual about whom the prescribed registrable facts are
recorded in the Register.
(6)
An ID card relating to an individual is not to be issued except on an application
made by him which either—
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(a)
accompanies an application made by him to be entered in the Register;
or
(b)
in the prescribed manner confirms (with or without changes) the
contents of an entry already made in the Register for that individual.
(7)
An individual who is not already the holder of an ID card must, in the
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prescribed manner, include an application to be issued with such a card—
(a)
in every application made by him to be issued with a designated
document; and
(b)
in every application made by him in accordance with provision made
under section 6.
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(8)
Other applications for the issue of an ID card—
(a)
may be made only in the prescribed manner;
(b)
may be made to the Secretary of State or, in prescribed cases, to a
designated documents authority; and
(c)
must be accompanied by the prescribed information;
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and regulations for the purposes of paragraph (b) may authorise an application
to be made to a designated documents authority irrespective of whether an
application is made to that authority for the issue of a designated document.
(9)
The Secretary of State must not make regulations containing (with or without
other provision) any provision for prescribing—
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(a)
the information to be recorded in or on an ID card, or
(b)
the form in which information is to be recorded in or on such a card,

unless a draft of the regulations has been laid before Parliament and approved
by a resolution of each House.
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Renewal of ID cards for those compulsorily registered
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(1)
This section applies where an individual—
(a)
is required, by virtue of section 6, to be entered in the Register; and
(b)
is so entered.
(2)
If the individual—
(a)
holds a valid ID card that is due to expire within the prescribed period,
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or
(b)
does not hold a valid ID card,

he must apply for one within the prescribed period.
(3)
Where an individual applies for an ID card in pursuance of this section, the
Secretary of State may require him to do such one or more of the things
20
specified in subsection (4) as the Secretary of State thinks fit for the purpose
of—
(a)
verifying information provided for the purposes of the application; or
(b)
otherwise ensuring that there is a complete, up-to-date and accurate
entry about that individual in the Register.
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(4)
The things that an individual may be required to do under subsection (3) are—
(a)
to attend at a specified place and time;
(b)
to allow his fingerprints, and other biometric information about
himself, to be taken and recorded;
(c)
to allow himself to be photographed;
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(d)
otherwise to provide such information as may be required by the
Secretary of State.
(5)
An individual who contravenes—
(a)
a requirement imposed by subsection (2), or
(b)
a requirement imposed under subsection (3),
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shall be liable to a civil penalty not exceeding £1,000.
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Functions of persons issuing designated documents
(1)
A designated documents authority may issue a designated document to an
individual only if—
(a)
it is satisfied that the requirements imposed by or under this Act in
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relation to the application for the issue of that document to that
individual have been complied with;
(b)
it is satisfied that the Secretary of State has considered and disposed of
so much of that application as relates to the making of an entry in the

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Register or the confirmation (with or without changes) of the contents
of such an entry; and
(c)
it has ascertained whether the individual already holds a valid ID card.
(2)
A designated documents authority which issues a designated document to an
individual who does not hold a valid ID card must ensure that the document
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is issued together with an ID card satisfying the prescribed requirements.
(3)
Regulations made by the Secretary of State may impose requirements
regulating how designated documents authorities handle—
(a)
applications to be entered in the Register that are made to them;
(b)
applications to be issued with ID cards that are made to them (whether
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or not as part of an application for a designated document); and
(c)
applications made to them that confirm (with or without changes) the
contents of an individual’s entry in the Register.
(4)
Regulations made by the Secretary of State may also require designated
documents authorities to notify the Secretary of State where a designated
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document that was issued together with an ID card—
(a)
is modified, suspended or revoked; or
(b)
is required to be surrendered.
Maintaining accuracy of Register etc.
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Power to require information for validating Register
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(1)
Where it appears to the Secretary of State that a person on whom a requirement
may be imposed under this section may have information in his possession
which could be used for verifying—
(a)
something recorded in the Register about an individual,
(b)
something provided to the Secretary of State or a designated
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documents authority for the purpose of being recorded in an
individual’s entry in the Register, or
(c)
something otherwise available to the Secretary of State for being
recorded about an individual in the Register,

the Secretary of State may require that person to provide him with the
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information.
(2)
Where it appears to a designated documents authority that a person on whom
a requirement may be imposed under this section may have information in his
possession which could be used for verifying—
(a)
something that is recorded in the Register about an individual who has
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applied to the authority for the issue or modification of a designated
document or of an ID card, or
(b)
something that has been provided to that authority for the purpose of
being recorded in the entry of such an individual in the Register,

the authority may require that person to provide it with the information.
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(3)
It shall be the duty of a person who—
(a)
is required to provide information under this section, and
(b)
has the information in his possession,

to comply with the requirement within whatever period is specified in the
requirement.
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(4)
A requirement may be imposed under this section on any person specified for
the purposes of this section in an order made by the Secretary of State.
(5)
The persons who may be specified in such an order include—
(a)
Ministers of the Crown;
(b)
government departments;
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(c)
a Northern Ireland department;
(d)
the National Assembly for Wales;
(e)
any other person who carries out functions conferred by or under an
enactment that fall to be carried out on behalf of the Crown.
(6)
The power of the Secretary of State to make an order specifying a person as a
10
person on whom a requirement may be imposed under this section includes
power to provide —
(a)
that his duty to provide the information that he is required to provide
is owed to the person imposing it; and
(b)
that the duty is enforceable in civil proceedings—
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(i)
for an injunction;
(ii)
for specific performance of a statutory duty under section 45 of
the Court of Session Act 1988 (c. 36); or
(iii)
for any other appropriate remedy or relief.
(7)
The Secretary of State may, in such cases (if any) as he thinks fit, make payments to a
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person providing information in accordance with this section in respect of the provision
of the information.
(8)
The Secretary of State must not make an order containing (with or without
other provision) any provision that he is authorised to make by this section
unless a draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a
25
resolution of each House.
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Notification of changes affecting accuracy of Register
(1)
An individual to whom an ID card has been issued must notify the Secretary
of State about—
(a)
every prescribed change of circumstances affecting the information
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recorded about him in the Register; and
(b)
every error in that information of which he is aware.
(2)
A notification for the purposes of this section must be given—
(a)
in the prescribed manner; and
(b)
within the prescribed period after the change of circumstances occurs
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or he becomes aware of the error.
(3)
Where an individual has given a notification for the purposes of this section,
the Secretary of State may require him to do such one or more of the things
falling within subsection (4) as the Secretary of State thinks fit for the purpose
of—
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(a)
verifying the information that may be entered in the Register about that
individual in consequence of the notified change or for the purpose of
correcting the error; or
(b)
otherwise ensuring that there is a complete, up-to-date and accurate
entry about that individual in the Register.
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(4)
The things that an individual may be required to do under subsection (3) are—

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(a)
to attend at a specified place and time;
(b)
to allow his fingerprints, and other biometric information about
himself, to be taken and recorded;
(c)
to allow himself to be photographed;
(d)
otherwise to provide such information as may be required by the
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Secretary of State.
(5)
Regulations under this section must not require an individual to provide
information to another person unless it is information required by the
Secretary of State for the statutory purposes.
(6)
An individual who contravenes a requirement imposed on him by or under
10
this section shall be liable to a civil penalty not exceeding £1,000.
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Invalidity and surrender of ID cards
(1)
Regulations may require an individual to whom an ID card has been issued to
notify the Secretary of State, and such other persons as may be prescribed, if he
knows or has reason to suspect that the card has been—
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(a)
lost;
(b)
stolen;
(c)
damaged;
(d)
tampered with; or
(e)
destroyed.
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(2)
The Secretary of State may cancel an ID card if it appears to him—
(a)
that the card was issued in reliance on inaccurate or incomplete
information;
(b)
that the card has been lost, stolen, damaged, tampered with or
destroyed;
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(c)
that there has been a modification of information recorded in the entry
in the Register of the holder of the card;
(d)
that another change of circumstances requires a modification of
information recorded in or on the card; or
(e)
that it is an ID card of a description of cards that the Secretary of State
30
has decided should be re-issued.
(3)
A person who is knowingly in possession of an ID card without either—
(a)
the lawful authority of the individual to whom it was issued, or
(b)
the permission of the Secretary of State,

must surrender the card as soon as it is practicable to do so.
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(4)
Where it appears to the Secretary of State that a person is in possession of—
(a)
an ID card issued to another,
(b)
an ID card that has expired or been cancelled or is otherwise invalid,
(c)
an ID card that has not yet been cancelled but is of a description of cards
that the Secretary of State has decided should be re-issued, or
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(d)
an ID card that is in that person’s possession in consequence of a
contravention of a relevant requirement,

the Secretary of State may require that person to surrender the card within such
period as he may specify.

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(5)
Where an ID card has to be surrendered under subsection (3) or (4), it must be
surrendered—
(a)
to the Secretary of State; or
(b)
in the case of a card issued by a designated documents authority, either
to the Secretary of State or to that authority.
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(6)
A person who contravenes a requirement imposed by or under—
(a)
any regulations under subsection (1), or
(b)
subsection (3) or (4),

is guilty of an offence.
(7)
A person guilty of an offence under subsection (6) shall be liable—
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(a)
on summary conviction in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a
term not exceeding 51 weeks or to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the
standard scale, or to both;
(b)
on summary conviction in Scotland or Northern Ireland, to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to a fine not
15
exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, or to both;

but, in relation to an offence committed before the commencement of section
281(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44), the reference in paragraph (a) to
51 weeks is to be read as a reference to six months.
(8)
In this section—
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(a)
references to a card having been damaged include references to
anything in or on it being, or having become, unreadable or otherwise
unusable; and
(b)
references to a card having been tampered with include references to
information in or on it having been modified for an unlawful purpose,
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or copied or otherwise extracted for such a purpose.
(9)
In this section “relevant requirement” means a requirement to surrender or
otherwise to deliver an ID card to the Secretary of State, or to another, which is
imposed—
(a)
by virtue of any order under section 40, or
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(b)
by any enactment relating to the surrender of any other document.

.
Provision of information from Register for verification purposes etc.
14
Use of information for verification or otherwise with consent
(1)
The Secretary of State may provide a person with information recorded in an
35
individual’s entry in the Register if—
(a)
an application for the provision of the information to that person is
made by or with the authority of that individual; or
(b)
that individual otherwise consents to the provision of that information
to that person.
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(2)
The only information about an individual that may be provided to a person
under this section is—
(a)
information about that individual falling within paragraph 1, 3 or 4 of
Schedule 1 (name, date and place of birth, gender and addresses,

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residential status, identifying numbers and validity of identifying
documents);
(b)
the information contained in any photograph of that individual
recorded in the Register;
(c)
the information about the individual’s signature that is so recorded;
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(d)
information about whether an ID card issued to the individual is in
force and, if not, why not;
(e)
information which, by virtue of section 3(2), is recorded in the Register
at that individual’s request;
(f)
the questions recorded by virtue of paragraph 8 of Schedule 1 for use
10
for the purposes of applications for information about that individual;
(g)
information confined to the grant or refusal of confirmation that
information falling within subsection (3) that has been submitted to the
Secretary of State coincides with information so falling that is recorded
in the individual’s entry in the Register; and
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(h)
information confined to the grant or refusal of confirmation that the
individual’s entry in the Register does not contain information of a
particular description falling within that subsection.
(3)
The information falling within this subsection is—
(a)
information comprised in a fingerprint;
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(b)
other biometric information;
(c)
the number to be used for the purposes of applications for information
about the individual in question;
(d)
the password or other code to be so used; and
(e)
the answers to the questions to be so used.
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(4)
The Secretary of State may—
(a)
by order modify subsections (2) and (3); and
(b)
by regulations impose restrictions in addition to those contained in this
section on the information that may be provided to a person under this
section.
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(5)
The Secretary of State may also by regulations make provision as to—
(a)
how an authority for the purposes of subsection (1)(a) is to be given;
(b)
the persons by whom, and the circumstances in which, an application
for those purposes may be made; and
(c)
how such an application is to be made.
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(6)
The Secretary of State may by regulations make it a condition of the provision
of information under this section—
(a)
that the person to whom it is provided has registered prescribed
particulars about himself with the Secretary of State;
(b)
that that person and the applicant for the information (where different)
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are for the time being approved by the Secretary of State in the
prescribed manner; and
(c)
that apparatus used for the purposes of the application, and apparatus
that it is proposed to use for the receipt and storage of the information,
is for the time being approved by the prescribed person in the
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prescribed manner.
(7)
The Secretary of State must not make an order containing (with or without
other provision) any provision modifying subsection (2) or (3) unless a draft of