Identity Cards - RA Party sits on the fence
A proposal clarifying that Epsom & Ewell Borough Council will not voluntarily ask residents to show ID Cards or add residents' details to the National Database was defeated recently by RA Party councillors. Instead they agreed not to decide their policy until after the government announces whether they will force councils to insist on seeing ID cards and hand over residents' data.
Cllr Colin Taylor (Lib Dem) had proposed that Epsom & Ewell should follow the example of other councils in Surrey and support the growing number of councils signing up to the all-party non-partisan No2ID campaign.
The purpose of the motion that other councils up and down the country are adopting is to make it clear to central government that local councils do not want to:
- require residents to show ID cards to obtain council benefits or services,
- participate in the National Database,
- spend money on any pilot project or feasibility study for ID cards.
"The hope of the No2ID campaign is that when the government realises the depth of opposition to involving Councils in their scheme they will drop the idea" said Colin, "so waiting to see what the government decides has much the same effect as voting in favour of making their use compulsory."
"Ironically the RA councillor who led the opposition to my proposal has told me he is totally opposed to ID Cards - but the RA Party is simply not prepared to stand up and be counted on anything remotely controversial."
There is to be a Public Meeting of the No2ID Campaign at Bourne Hall at 7.30 pm on Wednesday 9th September 2009.