AND ABOUT TIME

A couple of items today, first is the news that Alan Johnson the new Home Office minister has come to his senses over ID cards, British nationals will not be forced to carry identity cards after Alan Johnson, the Home Secretary, scrapped plans to make the controversial £4.9 billion scheme compulsory.

In a significant climb down, Mr Johnson yesterday announced that the cards would only be issued to Britons on a voluntary basis.

Civil liberty campaigners welcomed yesterday’s announcement. However, they warned that under the terms of the scheme, people’s personal details would still be stored on the National Identity Register at the point when they obtained or renewed a passport.

Mr Johnson said: “Holding an identity card should be a personal choice for British citizens - just as it is now to obtain a passport.

“Accordingly I want the introduction of identity cards for all British citizens to be voluntary.”
Asked if the cards would ever be made compulsory he said: “No.”

Now all he needs to sort out is the illegal databases of our personal information held by the Government Database State.

The other item is Just six families helped by government Mortgage Rescue Scheme after all the hype and “we will help the electorate in this recession” The scheme, which cost more than £280 million to put in place, was launched at the beginning of this year, with the Government saying it would reach its 6,000 target within two years.

But increasing numbers of households are struggling to meet their monthly mortgage payments and face losing their homes amid the recession.

Politicians described the figures as "absolutely pitiful", saying it didn't begin to address the true extent of the problem facing Britain's home owners.

Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman Vince Cable said: "Repossession is a ticking time bomb.
"The numbers of repossessions are likely to soar in the next two years because of rising unemployment. Temporary Government schemes are deferring the problem, not solving it."

And he warned: "If interest rates start to rise next year, the problem will become even more severe."

Almost 1,000 home owners are being evicted every week, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

Repossession numbers reached 12,800 in the first three months of this year, a rise of more than 50 per cent from 8,500 this time last year.

That scheme is really working well isn’t it?


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