Minister unveils 'no-brainer' ID card

Published on 30/07/2009 22:04

THE decision to introduce ID cards is a "no-brainer", Home Secretary Alan Johnson said yesterday as he unveiled the card's design.

Mr Johnson said the card would provide people with a "safe and secure" way of proving their identity.

The cards will help to combat identity fraud, enable the holder to travel to Europe without their passports and remove the hassle of using bank statements or gas bills as proof of identity, he said.

Mr Johnson spoke as he set off from St Pancras Station in London for Manchester, where the cards will become available later this year. He said: "The identity card is a safe, secure and simple way for people to protect and prove their identity and to travel around Europe but leave their passport at home.

"Given the growing problem of ID fraud, I believe the ID card will be welcomed as an important addition to the plastic cards that most people carry."

The card has name, photo, date of birth, sex and signature, while a chip on the back has fingerprint data.

The cards will be available in north-west England next year and across the UK in 2011-12.