Responding to plans concerning digital ID and facial recognition in the King’s speech, Silkie Carlo, Big Brother Watch Director said:
On digital ID:
“Access to public services we all pay for should never require a digital ID. This would inevitably be an intrusive, multi billion pound system no one wants, no one voted for, and that has no real purpose. Plans so far have indicated that the digital ID would be a cradle to grave system ripe for mass surveillance and more government control over people’s lives.
“Committing to a national digital ID system in the King’s Speech when the polls show the public don’t want one is utterly tone deaf.
“The Government has already failed to impose a mandatory digital ID system on the public and should now drop this terrible plan altogether before more taxpayers’ money is squandered on it.”
On facial recognition:
“We welcome the government finally agreeing to our demands to introduce a law to govern the use of facial recognition, which could end privacy as we know it without the right restraints.
“The devil will be in the detail but the Government has given us no reason to believe this new law will give the public the legal safeguards that are so long overdue, given they have already committed to the biggest ever increase of live facial recognition cameras up and down the country.
“Facial recognition combined with digital IDs that use our faces as barcodes is a recipe for a surveillance state nightmare.
“It’s vital that the Government learns from other Western democratic nations on how to protect the public from mass facial recognition surveillance rather than continuing this path which is frankly more akin to authoritarian states.”
Notes:
- Spokespeople are available for interview – please contact 07730439257 or info@bigbrotherwatch.org.uk