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Britain to take immigrants' fingerprints, eye scan

     London: The UK has issued fresh norms for foreign nationals coming here to register their biometrics, which include fingerprints, iris scans and facial recognition. Unveiling a new Strategic Action Plan for the National Identity Scheme and the Borders, Immigration and Identity Action Plan, British Home Minister Liam Byrne said, "But as patterns of migration change and passenger volumes grow, we need to transform our systems, and the way we work with international partners, to match them".

     The new plan which would involve maintaining a huge database would be introduced on a rolling basis and in the first phase, the biometric ID would be required by every person from the 169 countries outside the 28 countries belonging to European Economic Area (EEA), applying for work, study or stay in the United Kingdom for more than six months. The biometric ID will also be required for people from 108 visa nations applying to visit the UK, even for periods shorter than six months; The new plan will be introduced for foreign nationals from 2008 and by 2009 it will be expanded to all British citizens. Justifying the new plan, Bryne said, "Compulsory biometric identity for foreign nationals will help us secure our borders, shut down access to the illegal jobs, which we know attracts illegal immigrants, and help fight foreign criminals". Outlining the five-point benefits from the new plan, Bryne said that apart from securing the country's border the new initiative would also "become a key defence in the fight against crime and terrorism". The National Identity Scheme is also expected to deliver more efficient and effective public services, by ensuring a consistent means of identifying customers and would help in preventing identity fraud, which presently costs more than pound 1.7 billion a year for the UK economy. According to the report, more than 1,500 people, who have previously claimed asylum or been fingerprinted for other immigration purposes, have been identified trying to return to the UK and have been caught out by new biometric visa processes. The report also claimed that more than 51,000 people have already enrolled in the government's secure immigration scheme Iris, exceeding the government's 40,000 target. Bryne also said that nearly four million facial biometric British passports have already been issued. Terming the plan as an "ambitious" one, Bryne said that this long term programme will help in creating a comprehensive identity management infrastructure for the whole of the United Kingdom. However, the new plan has also met reservation in certain quarters over the huge investment involved in its realisation and whether that it would be as effective as promised by the Minister.

    The plan is not only stringent; it is also fraught with concerns relating to privacy of the individuals. Trying to dispel the notions, Bryne said, "We will keep risks and costs down by using existing Government investment in IT systems and delivering incrementally based on extensive piloting and trialling".
-Dec 20,  2006

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