Police State

If you go on the march to make your views known you are now a 'domestic extremist'. But it doesn't end there.

Police are gathering information about people attending protests for a national intelligence database.

Details of activists - including photographs - are collected by forces and passed to a central "domestic extremism" unit for storage and analysis.

The database features people seen at public demonstrations including anti-war rallies and environmental protests.

Campaigners can be included on the systems even if they have not committed a crime, a Guardian investigation revealed.

One face on police "spotter cards" obtained by the newspaper is comedian and political activist Mark Thomas.

Three national police units responsible for combating domestic extremism are run by the "terrorism and allied matters" committee of the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo). It receives £9m in public funding, from police forces and the Home Office, and employs a staff of 100.

The domestic extremism section was set up in 2004 to combat animal rights activists who were committing crimes.

The main unit, the National Public Order Intelligence Unit (NPOIU), runs the central database from intelligence supplied by police forces across England and Wales, which routinely deploy surveillance teams at protests, rallies and public meetings. NPOIU works with two other Acpo branches, the National Extremism Tactical Coordination Unit (Netcu) and the National Domestic Extremism Team.

A spokesman for the units said people on the database "should not be worried". "There are lots of reasons why people might be on the database," he said. "Not everyone on there is a criminal and not everyone on there is a domestic extremist but we have got to build up a picture of what is happening. Those people may be able to help us in the future. It's an intelligence database, not an evidence database."

"Protesting is not a criminal offence but there is occasionally a line that is crossed when people commit offences."

Stalin and Hitler taught New Labour well. But don't, for one minute, think the Tories would be any different.

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Scrap ID Cards

One of the good things about watching an authoritarian government slowly committing itself to the dustbin of history, is to see its supporters turning against each other. The backstabbing about expenses, in some cases being used to settle old scores, and now attacks on policies widely detested but previosly kept quiet about for fear of 'rocking the boat' are the new bloodsports.

ID cards, hated by those who enjoy individual freedom and who detest statism, are under attack, and thank God for that. Alan Johnson is said to oppose the current scheme, maybe he prefers another one. Either way he will be closely watching the response to a speech today by Lord Steyn. The following is from politics.co.uk:

Former law lord Lord Steyn will call for the government to scrap its proposed ID cards scheme today, in a sign of growing discontent among the judiciary over the controversial plans.

As he prepared to deliver his Farrar's Building memorial lecture he told journalists: "'My untutored view is that the debate on ID Cards is on its merits progressively turning against the government.

"In one of his English letters Voltaire said that the civil wars of Rome ended in slavery, and those of the English in liberty. He wrote that the English are jealous of their liberty. So they are.


"The commitment, by and large, of the British people to European constitutional principles and ideals does not require us to adopt an ID card system. In my view a national identity card system is not necessary in our country.

"No further money should be spent on it," he continued. "The idea should be abandoned."

Farrar's Building is one of England and Wales' leading civil and criminal law sets.

The new home secretary Alan Johnson is understood to be lukewarm about the scheme and is currently implementing a review of the plans, starting from 'first principles'.

I fear that the ID project will continue, in some form or other, whether we have a Labour, Tory or, God forbid, Lib-Dem government. There seems little for libertarians in the UK in any of the smaller parties, most of whom, even if opposed to ID cards, are authoritarian in many other respects.

Which is why I would urge them to look at the Libertarian Party. Not forgetting to support No2ID.

Manchester Must Be Punished

Last year Manchester told Her Majesty's Government to bugger off, in a quite spectacular way too. They voted against the imposition of a congestion charge. The government were very pissed off not to say angry.

How dare people see that their arguments about the environment were crap.

How dare people see that their argument, that if Mancunians said 'No' the government would not fund the new metrolink to the airport, was blackmail.

How dare people see that it was just yet another tax on motorists.

So Mancunians are now being punished by being given the chance to have a voluntary ID card before anybody else in the country. Well thanks for nothing. It's time all Mancunians had their nails done so they look good when they wave two fingers, or a single middle finger, at the government yet again. Don't fall for it!!

And good luck to the airline pilots fighting against the sneaking in of governemnt ID cards.
Full Story Here

ID Cards

Liberty tends to be very selective in its calls for freedom and liberty, but it does have some good stuff on its website, such as this on ID cards.

The Bitch Is Back

Here we go with the further rolling out of the government's despised ID card scheme.

Two airports are to introduce ID cards for workers as part of a pilot scheme, pardon the pun. But the link to the BBC website outlines other plans for gradual compulsory/voluntary introduction.

I don't think I've seen such a slappable face as Jacqui Smith's before. Oh, course I have, I forgot Hazel Blears.

Groundhog Day

Yet another data cock-up by HMG. The good thing about putting sevices out to private companies is that the government can try and hide behind them when personal data is left in a pub car park, like this!

But it doesn't wash. The government screams about ID theft to justify ever more intrusive surveillance of us, then repeatedly does its best to give away our identities, and any personal data it has on us to any old passerby.

So the next time some muppet says, about ID cards, CCTV etc. "nothing to hide nothing to fear" give them a good bollocking and point them in the direction of
No2ID.

Police State Tightening Its Grip

Police will soon be checking the identities of people in the street using hand-held mobile fingerprint scanners.

It is understood that the BlackBerry-sized devices are being issued to every UK police force under a scheme called Mobile Identification At Scene (MIDAS). They always have to have a smart acronym don't they?

They will enable officers to scan suspects' fingerprints and compare them against national records. So that will be more justification, in the eyes of the government, for a national database carrying all our fingerprints. After all, if you have not been fingerprinted and therefore don't show up on MIDAS what will they do? Probably drag you down the nick in case you are here illegaly. Then suggest it would save such misunderstandings in future if you 'volunteered' your fingerprints.

Police State

Yet again the government has sneaked out its latest ruse to brand us all with ID cards. This time, at a fringe meeting in Manchester, they have let it be known that they are planning to try forcing under 16s to carry ID cards.

Full story here.

If you don't already then it really is time you supported No2ID by clicking here.

Yet Another Data Shambles

Thanks to Mark Wadsworth who has this piece, or similar, on his blog.

I have an account with HSBC and have had some really annoying episodes with them. Only last week I threatened to take my account to another bank then remembered, I have tried most banks and they are all pretty abysmal.

This though could be the clincher. Just goes to show that crass incompetence is not the sole preserve of the public sector.

Another Data Shambles

Here we go again. This time it's Plymouth City Council.

A member of the public found the sickness records of 15 Plymouth City Council staff outside a local pub. Ironically the pub is called the Bar Ha! Ha!

The council have tried to say it's not a big deal but, as personal data should be secure, they are "taking this incident very seriously". Even so the authority claims it "has very strong procedures to protect data and its procedures are constantly under review". God help the people of Plymouth if the procedures weren't under constant review.

As government continues to look at more and more repressive ways to protect us from 'identity theft' it becomes ever more urgent that we protect ourselves from government, be it supra-national, national or local government.

ID Cards-Mad Cow Disease

Jacqui Smith (does she think that spelling her name that way makes her sound exotic?) has resurfaced with a timetable for ID cards.

On the radio this morning she was claiming that ID cards would make our identities more secure, so they are really for our benefit. Tell that to the millions of people who have had their personal data lost by various government departments.

As with every other issue, the government is reneging on previous promises about ID cards being voluntary too. Workers in 'high risk' areas will have to have them from next year but what is meant by 'high risk'? At the moment the government cites airport workers. But what about police and other emergency service workers? Civil servants? Bank staff who could open accounts and launder money for Osama bin Laden? People who work on ferries and at ports? People who work at oil refineries? Pretty soon a sizeable chunk of the population could be exempted from the promised voluntary nature of the scheme proposed by the government.

Then what about people visiting a government building, especially the House of Commons? People using airports? People using banks? Will they be told they can't without an ID card? But of course they can if they get one voluntarily!

From 2011 anyone applying for a passport will have to also apply for an ID card. From 2010 students and young people will be 'encouraged' to have an ID card.

If you haven't already done so please pledge your support to No2ID .

Government ID Card Plans Dealt A Blow

Here is a link to a leaked document annotated by NO2ID. It highlights the growing fiasco that is the government's ID card policy.

It's not terminal, yet, but we can hope.

Passport Renewals and ID Cards

NO2ID are now asking anybody who has recently applied for their first UK passport, and been interrogated at one of the IPS interrogation centres, to get in touch with them so that they can monitor the situation.

The interrogation centres are starting to open although the national ID database is not yet ready and people are not being fingerprinted, nor are ID cards yet being issued. It also seems that not all first time applicants are being interrogated.

For details on renewing your passport early to beat the introduction of ID cards please visit Renew For Freedom or NO2ID .

ID Cards

Here is a link to the BBC's report today on the government's latest pronouncements on its despised ID card scheme.

Despite massive public opposition, led by NO2ID and political parties such as the UK Independence Party , the government is still going ahead. What they are now saying is that their 'voluntary scheme', whereby you have to have an ID card if you want a passport, will have to run for several years before they can pass legislation to make them compulsory.

Sign the Pledge

No, not the one about giving up drink, that would not be useful. NO2ID are urging supporters, and others, to sign the pledge, link on the left hand side. By refusing to register for an ID card, no matter what devious methods the government employs to compel you, you will be partaking in an honourable act of defiance, and sticking two fingers up to the state.

I do not intend to rattle on as the link takes you to where you will find all you need to know.