Privatising ID cards - 4 comments
It's not that I have an answer to the ID card problem - it may just not be doable in a country like ours, and with widespread concern over the government's attitudes to civil liberties - but here are a few points:
- Governments and the public sector have a relatively poor record in managing IT projects.
- People are worried about governments' ability to, and interest in, monitoring the data.
- Tens of millions of people across the world use (and have personal data and credit cards registered with) high-volume sites like Amazon and eBay.
Frankly I'd feel reassured about the use of the data, and I'm convinced that not only would the cost savings be great, but the capacity for costs to spiral would be lessened.
This begs the question: what's in it for the private sector? Paying them out of the public purse would hardly be a solution, as it would be far too great a temptation for both sides. The alternative is that the private company be able to run the system for profit (albeit capped and regulated). How, though? They could be restricted to making a profit on the sale of new/replacement ID cards, though this may make the things too expensive for ordinary people to afford. What other opportunities could they exploit, that would allow cards to be affordable to all? By showing targeted advertisements when people use their home card-readers to view and amend their details? One-click purchasing of the company's other online products?
I can imagine making myself unpopular with this line, but perhaps it could give us an ID system which was cheaper, reduced the risk of snooping, satisfied people about intrusion and tracking, and which opened up opportunities to ordinary cardholders that the current proposed system seems determined to deny them.
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4 comments so far...
You seem to be opposed to the government's plans, but also seem to be searching for a "doable" ID card system for Britain.
Just what exactly is it you want to achieve with such a scheme?
And why do you imagine that getting a private company to provide the scheme would make the scheme any less intrusive, oppressive or inefficient than it currently is?
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I agree with James but would like to add that profit caps and the private sector do not mix. What entrepreneur will take the undertake the necessary investment for efficiency gains with the prospect of limited profit?
That's the economic text book answer, but think advertising opportunities and brand recognition, think reputation, think contacts and future business opportunities. It's hardly likely that the kind of company who would fit the bill would be one that depended on this one project for it's business. Also, imagine how long the contract would be.
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