AUSTRALIA, Should we have a National ID Card system?

[Maharg67]

A few decades back there was much controversy about Australian Commonwealth Government plans to introduce a National ID Card system. I opposed such an idea then because of concerns of privacy, confidentiality, of security as an individual and so did most Australians; the proof is that Australia has no such cards.

 

The reason that the issue has come up, again, for me is that is it growing very difficult to obtain legitimate, strong identity documents in Australia. I do not drive a car, have no driver's license, and do not have a passport; in Australia these are the two strongest common forms of photo ID. We have a '100 point' system and need the correct ID to do many things now, even to send parcels overseas. Every kind of ID has a different 'point rating' and together have to add up to 100 points. Many forms of ID have very low points rating or none at all.

 

So I am having second thoughts about an Australian National ID Card system.

 

I would like to hear from Australians, and non Australians, about what you think of the idea. Also I would like to hear from non Australians who have, of course, your own experiences with such systems. All are, of course, welcome to comment on the both issues.

 

Perhaps this debate will help me make up my mind on this issue. Thank you!

[Wintercross]

I don't think it is a good idea. adding a national id card just seems... dangerous to me.

 

It's not realy that hard to get 100 points. Birth cert, medicare and a bank card is usualy enough.

[ginnyfizz]

In the UK we kicked the idea of National ID Cards into touch as oppressive, a potential threat to civil liberties and a waste of money.

 

The points system in Oz does sound a bit stringent, we don't have that. However, we need to remember that due to the strict sanctions and massive fines imposed on firms that employ illegal immigrants (a firm in Leicester have just been fined GB£ 1 million), when applying for a job, you will be required to produce ID. I am unemployed at the moment and every single firm that interviews me or agency that registers me has requested either a UK passport or a UK Photocard driving licence (full licence that is). Which is OK if you happen to have both - I do. If you don't, a passport is expensive relative to your benefit money if you aren't in work (about a hundred quid), of course you can't get a full driving licence if you haven't passed your driving test. Even getting a certified copy of your birth certificate , which is another accepted alternative, costs money.

 

So these factors do give you food for thought about the pros and cons of ID cards. What are the charges in other countries for getting a passport/other acceptable ID?

[bben46]

In the US, most forms of ID such as drivers license are controlled by each state and not the federal government. Most states offer a non drivers ID available from the same source as the drivers license. These non driver IDs are accepted anywhere a drivers license would be and for any non driving need for a picture ID.

 

(Where I live, The SC Department of Motor Vehicles ) It looks nearly the same as a drivers license,but with different colors and a large Non Driver stamp across it. Another nearby state reverses the colors between a drivers license and non drivers ID, then turns it from landscape to portrait orientation.

 

One of the problems I have seen with this system is there are older people who have had problems getting a state ID. I had 2 older relatives (both now deceased) who were not able to get one - one never had a birth certificate, Social security card or a drivers license. And without some other official form of ID could not get the idiot bureaucrats to issue her any of these needed documents. Her parents were members of a religious sect that refused to register their children with the government - thus no birth certificate. She never held a wage paying job, so no need for a social security card. She never drove, never wanted to learn. Without any of these documents she was unable to get any of the others. As far as the state was concerned, she just did not exist because she had no ID to prove she existed - catch 22 (They had no problem issuing a death certificate though)

 

The second surrendered her valid state drivers license when her doctor told her to stop driving at 90 years old. Then over a month later discovered she needed some kind of 'official' picture ID - and was told she needed to go in person with some 'valid' ID, to a county health department in a county 300 miles away (480 Km) to apply for a verified copy of her birth certificate - then wait 2 weeks and come back, again in person to pick it up. Again the idiot bureaucrats offered no easy way to get an ID. They refused to recognize her expired drivers license as valid ID.

 

I hope that whatever Australia comes up with works better than this.

[Nintii]

As a non-Australian but someone who has a passport, and what we call ID Book and a Driver's License, I don't

see what the fuss is all about.

It's not like I've got a chip on my right hand or on my forehead, right ?

[Syco21]

Papers please.

[JimboUK]

Papers please.

 

Let me fix that.. Ihre Papiere Bitte

[ginnyfizz]

Seriously, you do get asked for your ID, sometimes proof of your National Insurance number as well. Don't produce them and they certainly wouldn't take the risk of employing you. That's why I always said we didn't need separate legislation for ID cards when we were already de facto being asked to prove ID in other ways.

[JimboUK]

Seriously, you do get asked for your ID, sometimes proof of your National Insurance number as well. Don't produce them and they certainly wouldn't take the risk of employing you. That's why I always said we didn't need separate legislation for ID cards when we were already de facto being asked to prove ID in other ways.

 

Authorities can't insist on it, Labour were going to make it an offence not to carry it.

[ginnyfizz]

I wouldn't recommend refusing to produce ID if it is the case that you are a benefit claimant and have been sent to the interview under a direction from the JobCentrePlus. Unless you can afford a benefit sanction of at least three months. In theory you can't be forced, in practice you can.