So, we saw off the Home Office's Identity Cards Bill, at least for the time being. It never survived the second reading in the House of Lords thanks to the London School of Economics' report, which was supportive of ID but highly critical of this scheme. The Home Office has gone very quiet since then, which is understandable now that we're into the fever of an election, but what's going to happen next to the Identity Cards Bill?
When David Blunkett, the architect of the current draft legislation, left office it was clear that he would be back. It's hard to find a New Labour politician, or civil servant, who is prepared to stand in the way of anything that Mr Blunkett set in place, since they know he'll be back with a vengeance. But where will he return? After all, it wouldn't look good for him to oust an incumbent at the next cabinet reshuffle. And he wants the Home Office back, to carry on his works of shifting the balance of power away from the citizen and over to the nanny state - but that won't be possible.
My theory is this: after the election the government (which will still be Labour, albeit with a reduce majority) will announce the creation of a Department for Homeland Security, with a brief to protect British citizens. This Department will assume control of the newly formed Special Reconnaissance Regiment, Immigration, all the national police departments and some elements of the judiciary. And this will be the place to sit the newly-launched ID Cards scheme. After all, which political party would stand in the way of an initiative that is there to protect the people?
And guess who is going to get the job of running that Department? Step forward, D Blunkett Esq...
If anyone can offer me odds on this happening, just let me know where to place the bet!
Sunday, April 10, 2005
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