Charles Kennedy

Liberal Democrats | Ross Skye & Lochaber

Kennedy: Will PM Invoke Parliament Act To Force Through Id Cards Bill?

At Prime Minister’s Questions Charles Kennedy, Leader of the Liberal Democrats, asked the Prime Minister whether, “based on his 35% of the vote…if the House of Lords rejects the legislation, ultimately will the Prime Minister invoke the Parliament Act to force it through?”

Mr Kennedy also asked Mr Blair, given that “1 in 5 of the population don’t possess passports, and that very many of them, obviously, are elderly…how much will they have to pay for their stand-alone identity cards?”

Text of PMQ exchange follows:

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Mr Kennedy: Given that we know from the Government’s own figures that 1 in 5 of the population don’t possess passports, and that very many of them, obviously, are elderly people who are unlikely to require or seek passports in the future. Could he just clarify for us – people in that category – how much will they have to pay for their stand-alone identity cards?

Prime Minister: There is no question, as we’ve said on many occasions of moving to a compulsory identity card before there’s a proper debate in the House – I don’t think that is new – and we have always said that. However – and I hope, I mean I’ve read the debate carefully yesterday – and obviously there are many concerns being raised by many members of the House and we will have to listen to those concerns and respond to them. But I hope people also recognise that with the advent of the biometric technology there is a real chance of getting, for the first time, a secure identity card that can yield many, many benefits for this country.

Mr Kennedy: Mr Speaker, following on from yesterday’s debate and the divisions at the end of it – and as the Prime Minister properly recognises - there is disquiet in all sections of this House about so many aspects of this legislation. Now could he clarify one thing: if it proves to be the case in due course that the House of Lords rejects this legislation, based on his 35% of the vote, will he invoke….[interference] if the House of Lords rejects the legislation, ultimately will the Prime Minister invoke the Parliament Act to force it through?

Prime Minister: Let’s wait and see what happens in the other place, but it was a manifesto commitment of my party and we fought an election on, and we are the duly democratically elected government. However, more important is the point that he’s making which is that there are real concerns expressed in different parts of the House. We will listen to those concerns and respond to them. I simply ask in turn that people also listen to the case that’s being made which is that the advent of the new technology and the fact that we are going to have to change our passport system as a result of changes happening elsewhere in the world do mean that it makes sense to move to a secure identity card for today’s world which will help us not merely in things like illegal immigration and fighting terrorism and organised crime, but also bringing direct benefits to the citizen. Now, we are at the beginning of the debate. Let us have the debate and let us both listen to each other’s points of view. I will listen to the points that he is making but I simply ask that people respect the arguments on the other side of the ledger.