UK Borders Bill

My Lords, I apologise for interrupting the noble Lord. It is not something I would normally do, but we should try to focus on what is actually on the Marshalled List. In general terms, though, I am grateful to both noble Lords for tabling the amendment because it enables us to explain a little more about how we intend bids to work. In our view the amendment places an unnecessary restriction on what information may be recorded on the biometric immigration document. It would further limit the development of BIDs, particularly if the document is to be combined with another document such as an ID card or where we wish to tailor the information on the card for national purposes. Limiting the information on the document could restrict our ability to take up some technological advances, as we would be unable to add contents to the card unless there were either international agreements or EC regulations that permitted such developments. That seems to be an unnecessary fetter on our ability to improve the quality of information on a card. It is slightly bizarre to suggest that we would have to wait for yet another international agreement or EC regulation. The amendment may mean that we could not combine the biometric immigration document with any other document, such as the ID card, if the other document is required to contain information not covered by an EC regulation or under international treaties to which the UK is party. For example, this could include the holder’s national insurance number. I am sure that that is not the intention of the noble Lord, Lord Avebury, in moving the amendment. If it is, then the noble Lord has clearly found a clever way of inflicting some damage on an important element of our policy. In making his argument, the noble Lord rather suggested that it would allow the Secretary of State to collect unlimited information and to keep unlimited information on the BID. I must refute that; it is not the case. The power to require the provision of information must be read in the context of the purpose of a biometric immigration document; that is, a document which is connected to proper immigration control, providing evidence of immigration status. The provisions do not give a power to collect unlimited information which has no relevance to immigration at all. The noble Lord was citing health details. I cannot think of circumstances where they would be terribly relevant to immigration status; there may be some, but it is not a licence to collect unlimited data. In addition, the processing of personal data must be done compatibly with the Data Protection Act. Together with the Human Rights Act, that of course provides particular and specific safeguards which I am sure noble Lords quite appreciate. So I do not accept the noble Lord’s argument. If we were to go with the amendment as it is, it would fetter our ability to develop the card and unreasonably restrict the amount of information we could place on it. Of course, the precise format of the BID will be determined by the forthcoming EU regulation on biometric residence permits, expected to be finalised in November, which I guess is the cleverness in the amendment. It will require member states to issue a biometric residence permit, which of course will be the BID in the UK to a specified uniform format. From our understanding of the draft regulations, we are planning for the BID to appear as a highly secure polycarbonate standalone card which will contain a tamper-proof embedded chip. It will have a definite menu of information—with which we are familiar—listed on it, most of which will be compatible in some way or other with the sort of information one would expect to be collected on other documents such as passports. I must resist the noble Lord’s amendment, but this has been a useful, short debate.