ID Cards 'Cancelled' - Are They?

Setting aside the fact that ID cards are now 'voluntary', according to Alan Johnson, the entire question of whether ID cards will be introduced on a voluntary or compulsory basis is academic really.

According to Statewatch: "The 'Stockholm Programme', the next 5-year
plan for Justice and Home Affairs, is expected to be adopted in autumn
2009". Tony Bunyan, Statewatch editor, points out that the Stockholm
programme contains: "An 'information system architecture' to bring about
the sharing of all data across the EU. The use of 'security
technologies' to harness the 'digital tsunami' to gather through mass
surveillance personal data on peoples' everyday activities through
public-private partnerships." Bunyan goes on to warn that: "What is new
is the clear aim of creating the surveillance society and the database
state".

See: http://www.statewatch.org/news/2009/jun/eu-com-stockholm-prog.pdf

and: http://www.ecln.org/ECLN-statement-on-Stockholm-Programme-April-2009-eng.pdf

As the Lisbon Treaty reaffirms that the EU can assume responsibility for any area of legislation it chooses, does it really matter what our provisional government decides?

Nigel Farage has said: "Anyhow, make no mistake. If the Lisbon Treaty is ever in force the day will come when as citizens of a country called Europe we will all be forced to carry an ID card."

Can we leave now, please?