National Identity Register and ID Card Cancellations

Wednesday 16th March 2011 Written Statements

[The Minister for Immigration (Damian Green)]

I am today placing in the Library certificates of destruction from contractors confirming compliance with section 3 of the Identity Documents Act 2010. These certificates are accompanied by a covering note that sets out the process and method of delivery of destruction of the national identity register.

I can also confirm that all ID cards ceased to be valid legal documents on 22 January 2011. Cardholders were notified by post to their registered address shortly after enactment of the 2010 Act and border agencies and other interested parties were informed of the cancellation of the scheme.

The cost of decommissioning ID card systems and securely destroying the personal data is, subject to final invoices, £375,000. The cost of terminating and amending National Identity Service contracts with suppliers was £2.253 million. I will also be placing in the Library a copy of a letter sent on 10 February 2011 to the hon. Member for Hackney South and Shoreditch (Meg Hillier) that sets out the breakdown of these costs in more detail.