The National Identity Scheme will be managed by the Identity and Passport Service (IPS). The IPS incorporates the former UK Passport Service and will build on their experience and expertise in confirming nationality and identity. The IPS will also work closely with the UK Borders Agency (UKBA) and UKvisas.
An independent commissioner will oversee the National Identity Scheme and report to Parliament.
The key components of the scheme are:
The enrolment process involves registering your identity when you apply for an ID card. This includes building up a ‘biographical footprint’ of basic facts about your life and recording your biometric data
Registering your biometric information is a vitally important part of safeguarding your identity. There will be local enrolment centres around the UK and mobile centres for remote areas to make this service available to as many people as possible.
The NIR will be seperate data systems holding personal identity information and biometric data for everyone who has enrolled in the scheme.
The NIR will contain only identity-related information. Medical records, tax and benefits information and other government records will not be in the NIR. However, the Identity Registration Number (IRN) will provide a quick way for the relevant organisation to make checks against individuals’ records within their own systems, thus increasing efficiency and avoiding the wrong records being used.
Once the scheme comes fully into operation ID cards can be issued as stand-alone documents or alongside such ‘designated documents’ as passports.
If you are a foreign national living in the UK, your ID card will act as your residence permit, residence card or registration certificate and will be linked to the National Identity Register (NIR) in the same way as any other ID card.
What makes the scheme secure is the fact that your identity is checked and confirmed, not by means of your ID card alone but by using the identity verification service to check your ID card against your record on the NIR. A forged ID card, for example, would be useless without a matching record.
The identity verification service will provide a way for accredited organisations to check an individual’s identity. This means that you will have a secure and convenient way of proving your identity in a variety of situations, such as opening a bank account or registering with a GP, for example.
The identity verification service works at different levels according to what information is needed. For example:
To protect your privacy, all organisations that wish to use the identity verification service will need to be accredited, and they will need your consent before they use the service to check your identity.
