Lords could sink ID bill, admits Clarke

Tania Branigan, political correspondent
Friday February 11, 2005

The home secretary admitted yesterday that the controversial ID card bill may founder in the Lords, after the Tories pulled out of backing it in the Commons.

Charles Clarke's admission came as the prime minister appealed for the opposition to support the scheme, arguing that civil liberties objections were "outdated".

The government has been keen to push the legislation through before the general election expected in May.

The issue has embarrassed the opposition, which initially supported the legislation.

Michael Howard ordered his MPs to abstain from a vote at the third reading on the grounds that the government had not addressed Conservative concerns. The bill was passed by 224 votes to 64.

At its previous reading, Mr Howard had ordered them to support it, to the anger of several shadow cabinet members and with only partial success.

His volte-face prompted accusations of opportunism, with Mr Clarke describing him as a "failing leader".

The Liberal Democrats have opposed the "expensive and illiberal" scheme throughout.

Under the plans, expected to cost up to £5.5bn, each citizen will own a card bearing his or her fingerprints and other details. The information would also be on a central database.

"I believe there will be substantial support, but if the general election is called and we were in the standard negotiations at the end of the year with the Lords, if the Tories [there] maintained the position of the Tories in the Commons, it would be difficult to carry the legislation through," said Mr Clarke.

In that case, "their [the Tories'] decision would be explicitly to kill the bill. We would have to reintroduce it after the election. I think they would be extremely foolish to take that course because people would not understand why they had put their block on a law and order and security measure of this kind."

He added: "I can only condemn Michael Howard as a failing leader, unable to impose his will on his shadow cabinet."

Ten Tories opposed the bill at its second reading in December and 72 were conspicuously absent. Several Labour MPs also rebelled, while all 55 Liberal Democrats voted against it.

David Davis, the shadow home affairs spokesman, said yesterday: "The only failure here is that of the government, who have failed to answer serious questions about practical issues to make this ID system work. Rather than playing politics with this issue, they should make a serious effort to make it work by proper revision in the Lords."

A Tory spokesman said it was impossible to determine what the party's peers would do until the government responded to questions properly."

Tony Blair had earlier called on Tories to rethink their position during a visit to the UK Passport Agency, which has just finished trials of the biometric technology to be used on the cards. Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005