ID card rollout begins

[Charles Lindsey]

On Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:47:04 +0100, Ian Batten <igb@batten.eu.org> wrote:

> On 26 Sep 08, at 1454, Charles Lindsey wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 25 Sep 2008 22:55:09 +0100, Ian Batten <igb@batten.eu.org>  
>> wrote:
>>
>>>> I would imagine that "appearing to relate" will in future include  
>>>> checking the biometrics.

> Why would I want to do that?  The current legal test is ``appears to  
> relate''.  The current process is that someone idly glances at a  
> passport and checks the photograph is vaguely right.  They have no way  
> to check the validity of UK passports, still less non-UK or non-European  
> passports, and there is no expectation in legislation that they will.   
> In Ross's hierarchy of document examination, this is clearly level one.

Yes, but the expectation of "appears" may well change as ID Cards become  
the norm. And all employers would be expected to use reasonable diligence  
to ensure that the documents proferred for identification were genuine.

> On the other, you're proposing that unincorporated partnerships  
> employing temporary staff (eg, two blokes running a plumbing business  
> looking to employ someone to answer to the phone while they're out a- 
> plumbing) should equip themselves with a large screen and the means to  
> check public key signatures on smart-card ID documents?    And the  
> skills to perform the photograph / face comparison, too.  I thought you  
> were against transferring the burden?

I agree that it would not be "reasonable" to expect plumbers to equip  
themselves with special equioment to perform such checks.

But it could be entirely reasonable to expect largish companies offering,  
for example, cleaning services to the Home Office to do it.

-- 
Charles H. Lindsey ---------At Home, doing my own thing------------------------
Tel: +44 161 436 6131                       
   Web: http://www.cs.man.ac.uk/~chl
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