National Identity Card
In the UK, demonstrating that you are who you say you are is a bit more difficult that in other countries. You will have experienced it yourself if you have ever tried to open a bank account in this country. In other non anglo-saxon countries is enough to show you National Identity Card, a document, guaranteed by the State, that has your name, picture and a number that is unique to you and is called the National Identity Number . In the UK there is no such document, the funny thing is its absence is in the sake of privacy!.
Now, let me explain why I say it is funny than in the sake of privacy there is no NID. There is no such thing as privacy in this country. Let me illustrate this with a few examples:
Now, let me explain why I say it is funny than in the sake of privacy there is no NID. There is no such thing as privacy in this country. Let me illustrate this with a few examples:
- in this country there are three agencies that keep a record of all your financial movements (i.e. you bank is obliged to communicate them your credit card balance periodically, your gas supplier will immediately tell them if you have not payed a bill...), you can see your records at this agencies, for example here (paying of course);
- in London (and I guess other big cities as well) they control whether a car has payed the "congestion charge" by recording with cameras the traffic in all streets. Then they have software that identifies vehicles and licence plates and checks in some database if that vehicle has payed the charge or not.
- newspapers here do not hesitate to publish the picture of suspects of crimes or frauds. Some of them are found not guilty, but only after their picture and name is known by everybody.
I am not in favour of the State having too much information about the citizens but I find incoherent not having a NID here, where the State already knows everything about you.
Note: In the UK Passports and driving licenses can be used as proof of identity but not everybody has them (only if you drive or have travelled abroad you will have them) and they are not always sufficient.
Note: In the UK Passports and driving licenses can be used as proof of identity but not everybody has them (only if you drive or have travelled abroad you will have them) and they are not always sufficient.
2 Comments:
My girlfriend and me have just left the UK after more than three tough and unsuccessful months and found this ID card issue one of the most absurd things there.
We have an ID card in Spain and it's used for everything. But in the UK there are situations like sometimes you can't even pay with your credit card just because it doesn't have a ridiculous security chip.
We just show our ID card together with our credit card and we're done! Why do you need that annoying redundant security?
I quite like your blog, best wishes.
I am English, and I can tell you that most English people simply do not like the idea of identity cards. We think it's the sort of thing that happens in wars, or if the Nazi's had taken over the country, for example.
We're happy not to have them. We don't like the idea of having to remember to take an ID card with us every time we go outside. We want to be able to do things without worrying about ID cards.
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