Make ID cards local, says think-tank

It would be cheaper, more secure and better for citizens if identity cards were run locally rather than nationally, a think-tank has argued.

The New Local Government Network (NLGN) has released a white paper suggesting local councils create a local ID card or "entitlement" card to be used for accessing public services, authenticating identity and paying for small purchases. Such a card could take the place of the embattled national identity card scheme, for less money while offering better ID safeguards, the report argued.

"A central question should not be why government needs a universal form of identification, but what benefits it would give to citizens," the report said. "Since 80 per cent of the public's contact with the state is through local authorities, individuals benefit from a single form of identification not when information is shared effectively between central government departments, but within the local government family."

The report wasn't commissioned as an attack on the ID card scheme, but because NLGN was looking into how government could make access to public services easier. "This seems to be a sensible idea, using smart cards," said the report's author Dr Victoria Barbary, a researcher at NLGN. "Use what's already there, and enhance it."

Councils such as Bolton and Bracknell Forest already use similar cards for bus and leisure facility access, so adding authentication allowing access to social services wouldn't be difficult. "If this is rolling out over the country, we can take the expertise that councils have and use it to great effect," said Dr Barbary.

Such a card could feature a photograph, basic biographical details and a chip for authentication. It could be accessible in similar ways to online banking, letting users maintain their own identity information and ensure the details are correct. But no key information would be held on the card, adding an extra step of security.

The paper doesn't suggest adding more data to what's already collected, she said. "It'd just be a way of accessing local databases," Dr Barbary said. "Just using local information and make it easier to access."

The card should be developed under a national framework to ensure quality and security across the country, she said. "It would have a national standard," she said, similar to how credit cards have international frameworks, which banks and other suppliers must meet, but can add other services as needed by their customers.

In addition, the cards could be interoperable, so a user in Bolton could use their card when they travel to Brighton, the report noted.

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