Liverpool Councillors say no to ID cards (Garston and Halewood Liberal Democrats)

Garston and Halewood Liberal Democrats <info@garstonld.org.uk>

Liverpool Councillors say no to ID cards

December 5, 2007 12:00 AM

Liverpool City Councillors will next week (12th December) be debating the Government's continuing plans to force UK citizens to have ID cards.

Lib Dems are calling for the plans to be abandonned, and for the money to be spent on more police instead.

The call comes in a motion to the City Council. The motion reads:

Council believes that the Labour Government's compulsory Identification Cards (ID) will cost each of Liverpool residents a minimum of £300, a price that no resident can afford on top of the additional direct and indirect taxes levied by this Government since 1997.

Council believes that these plans will unfairly penalise those residents in the poorer communities in Liverpool.

The Liberal Democrats are campaigning against Labour's expensive and ineffective plans for mandatory ID cards.

Council agrees with the Liberal Democrats and supports the campaign to scrap plans for compulsory ID cards. The cost needed to implement compulsory ID cards - of up to £18 billion, would pay for 10,000 more police on the streets.

Council supports Liberal Democrat plans to:

Fund 1000's more police - as well as extending plans for additional Police Community Support Officers.

Equip Police Officers with new technology to cut time spent form filling and help them tackle crime. (e.g. handheld computers for beat bobbies so they don't have to return to the station).

Support biometrics in passports as a means of combating cross border crime, illegal immigration, terrorism and fraud.

Establish a National Border Agency by bringing together the Officers from immigration, Police and Customs, enabling overlapping responsibilities at our ports and airports.

Crack down on illegal working by improving the way the Home Office inspects and prosecutes employers of illegal migrants.

Allow the use of phone-taps and other 'intercept communications' as evidence against suspected terrorists in court, to make it easier to bring them to court.

Council believes that:

i) the Government's identity card scheme will be expensive and ineffective; and

ii) more Police Officers will be better for tackling crime and terrorism than a piece of plastic.

Further information about the City Council meeting, as well as information about other meetings, is available at www.liverpool.gov.uk