Identity Cards Bill (2004)

(1) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision authorising a person providing a public service in respect of which—

(a) a condition is imposed under section 15, or

(b) a condition for the production of an ID card, or of evidence of registrable facts, or both, is imposed by or under any other enactment, to be provided with information recorded in the Register that he requires for the purpose of ascertaining or verifying registrable facts about an individual who has applied for the provision of the service.

(2) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision as to—

(a) the manner in which applications for the provision of information under this section must be made;

(b) the persons by whom, and the circumstances in which, such an application may be made; and

(c) the information that may be provided in response to such an application and the manner in which may be provided.

(3) The Secretary of State may by regulations make it a condition of the provision of information under this section—

(a) that the person to whom it is provided has registered prescribed particulars about himself with the Secretary of State;

(b) that that person and the applicant for the information (where different) are for the time being approved by the Secretary of State in the prescribed manner; and

(c) that apparatus used for the purposes of the application, and apparatus that it is proposed to use for the receipt and storage of the information, is for the time being approved by the prescribed person in the prescribed manner.

(4) The Secretary of State must not make regulations containing (with or without other provision) any provision that he is authorised to make by this section unless a draft of the regulations has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House.
(5) Before draft regulations under this section are laid before either House of Parliament, the Secretary of State must take such steps as he thinks fit for securing that—

(a) members of the public in the United Kingdom are informed about the reasons for the proposal to make the regulations; and

(b) for consulting them about it.

(6) In this section “enactment” includes an enactment comprised in an Act of the Scottish Parliament.

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EXPLANATORY NOTES

Clause 17: Power to provide for checks on the Register

109. This clause provides a power to the Secretary of State to enable checks to be made of information recorded in the Register by people providing public services. It also gives the Secretary of State the power to regulate identity checks, including an accreditation scheme for user organisations and the equipment they are using.

110. Subsection (1) enables the Secretary of State to make regulations allowing the provision of information to a person providing a public service for which regulations under clause 15 have been made or in respect to which any other legislation makes it a condition to produce an ID card or any other evidence of registrable facts recorded on the Register. This must be for the purposes of ascertaining or verifying information of an individual applying for the public service.

111. Subsection (2) provides that regulations may specify the manner in which applications for checks of the Register are to be made, the persons and the circumstances in which the application may be made, the information that may be provided and the manner in which the provision of information is to be made.

112. Subsection (3) provides that the provision of information may be made dependent on the applicant registering particulars about himself, that the person and the applicant have been approved in the prescribed manner and the equipment is accredited. Clause 41(6) sets out in more detail what regulations for the approval of a person or of apparatus might include.

113. The regulations are subject to an affirmative resolution procedure (Subsection (4)). Before any draft regulations are laid before Parliament, the Secretary of State must take steps to ensure that members of the public in the United Kingdom are informed and consulted on any proposals (Subsection (5)).

114. Subsection (6) ensures that "enactment" for the purposes of this section includes an Act of the Scottish Parliament. This means the rules governing provision of information from the Register are uniform throughout the UK.