In the wake of revelations that it has cost millions to dispense with Labour’s Stasi ID Cards scheme, their originator just doesn’t know when to let go.
Mr Blunkett said: “Millions of pounds have been poured down the drain, not to mention the removal of a benefit freely chosen by thousands of people to help protect their identity.”
“We are looking here at £2.25 million which has been thrown away for no purpose whatsoever.”
“If identity cards and the work that had been done had been maintained, people would have been able to choose to continue using the card as a passport for internal and European travel.”
“The data would not have had to have been destroyed – as it was given freely by the individual – and we could have integrated the data into the biometric passports which, in years to come, will doubtless become mandatory for international travel.”
I suppose we do have to give him full marks for chutzpah. That cost is a direct result of his obstinate, bullish, pig-headedness in forcing this nasty scheme on us in the first place. He is responsible for that waste, not the government now dispensing with it. And I note that he is still trying to dissemble about the whole “voluntary” thing. Sure, the initial roll-out did involve useful idiots volunteers, but the plan was to force all of us onto it and there’s nothing voluntary about that. And as for using them as passports, well, that’s what we have passports for and it’s how I use mine.
Idiot.
“”But the cost of cancelling the contracts topped £2.25 million””
Were the contracts not between the technology firms and Labour? Did the Cons not always say that they would cancel the scheme if they got in?
The people who bought the cards are not being compensated, and quite rightly, so why should these firms be?
The contracts were probably written to be binding on the incoming government.
Doesn’t he have a directorship or a consultancy post with one of the companies involved in the ID Card scheme? I seem to remember something about it when he laft office…
“”The contracts were probably written to be binding on the incoming government.””
Thats a bit shitty.
Julia – yes, he did, the scumbag.
Bucko – from the point of view of the contractors, it was a sensible precaution.
“” for internal and European travel”
Internal? Good god that’s what he was planning the bastard!
That’s exactly what the nasty little creep was planning.
Sadly, those who already paid for a card have won their appeal and will be refunded, but it was delicious while it lasted.
While cancelling the contracts may have cost £2.25 million, could someone remind me how much was spent on setting up the whole thing BEFORE it was cancelled.
(He asked, expecting the sum to be WAY in excess of £2.25 million.)
Try moving the decimal point two places to the right, it will probably be close to how much it cost to set this scheme up if the fiasco of other Whitehall managed projects in electronic government is anything to go by.