Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
ID for voting? What do people think?
I'm totally in favour of this. It's common sense IMHO. I can't see why some folks are opposed to it.
Every time I start a new job, open a bank or credit account or pick up a parcel I have to produce some kind of ID. What's the big deal about showing some ID before you vote?
I'm very in favour of ID cards too. I'm fed up of having to dig out copies of utility bills and passport copies for ID. I have to do this quite frequently for work. It's such a pain. I want to have one central thing that identifies me beyond doubt. If they can manage this in India then ...
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by maggie on
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I do not want an ID, not carrying one is a freedom that I enjoy to travel around this country without having to explain who I am and I do not want to relinquish this freedom.
Voter fraud is minimal and to be effective needs orchestrating which quickly draws attention to it so why change things for a crime that is under control. As for "IDs identifying you beyond doubt" I doubt it as they can be forged just like passports if you really want to.
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I have only needed to produce ID once in the last 18 years and my passport was sufficient. Not all of us live lives needing or wanting to identify ourselves.
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Permalink Reply by Michael Anderson on
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It just isn't going to happen Neil. The previous attempt to bring them in 2012 was scrapped only a month after it started (by the then Home Secretary Theresa May) as the cost of the scheme was rapidly approaching £1bn, and that was after only 15,000 cards had been issued.
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Wouldn't having all that information in one easily hackabe location (because let's face it the government has a pretty poor record on personal data breaches) bother you? It does me.
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You need id just to claim a parcel at the post office! How many people have a costly passport ir staff id?
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Yes its called a passport, I have one that lives in the drawer and I don't need to carry it.
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Permalink Reply by StephenBln on
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@maggie Of course you have to explain who you are. Try getting into the House of Commons, City Hall and many other buildings without any identification and do let us know how you get on. A passport is the wrong documentation and is intended for those leaving the country.
Having blue eyes and blonde hair is simply just not sufficient.
Anyway, anyone who carries a credit card, could just as well carry an ID card, which in my opinion, is the sign of an ordered society. Many of the gripes of a large proportion of the population regarding foreigners could be cleared up if an ID were to be issued.
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Stephen I have neither blonde hair nor blue eyes.
The last time I went into the House of Commons was a year ago after staging a one person demonstration against privatisation of the NHS at the entrance and was escorted through by a very nice policeman, at no point was I asked for ID. (They even kindly looked after my banner while I went and had a cuppa in the cafe there).
I am fortunate that when I go out of my door I don't carry a handbag, a wallet, credit cards, mobile phone, I simply carry my keys and some change. On the occassions I get public transport I will take my Freedom Pass out of the drawer but otherwise do not carry it. I see my relationship with the state as one of trust supported by law and do not see the need for this relationship to be more ordered.
I am open to arguments but don't see how "gripes of a large proportion of the population regarding foreigners could be cleared up if an ID was issued."
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@Maggie.
Being registered as a resident and being in the system with an ID card is the basis for everything else. Here, it's the doorway into services and benefits. i.e. Child benefit, Maternity leave for either parent after birth for a year, which can bring up to 1,800€ a month and all the housing benefits - top ups on rents for low earners. It also enables authorities to check that someone is not claiming in two areas at the same time for the same benefits. Plus it is a must, when renting a place, opening accounts etc., and of course voting.
The blue eyes and blond hair remark was not meant as quip at you, but there are many in society, not of anglo-saxon origin, who'd be very happy if they could at last, carry a verifiable ID around with them. Police profiling does happen and having an ID card is the least painful way to prove who you are.
Of course, society gains in an ID card system and perhaps there are downsides for the individual.. i.e. like having to register place of residence. But in a federal system, like ours, it enables States, Local Authorities to count the number of residents accurately, know how many children or seniors actually live in each Borough, State, important when it comes to the distribution of government money for schools, help for the elderly etc., Importantly, it also does away with the need for a census every decade. The last census in Germany was in 1987 and that was the first in thirty years. A census is not really a good marker for planning national investment for the future, but running an up to date registration system is.
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Thankyou for replying and the info; I can see that it would be useful with regards "Police profiling does happen and having an ID card is the least painful way to prove who you are."
I will think on it...
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@Maggie...That is nonsense. For some people not being able to pull out id is restrictive of liberty. So it works both ways. Nothing is stopping you from walking about the country freely. How often have you been stopped and asked for ID? Why would that change? That is the irrationality that comes out in the debate as always.
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