Why I'm Against ID Cards

This article neatly sums up why I'm against the introduction of ID cards.

Can we trust the government, and all future governments, to use the data responsibly? Already many public sector bodies will have access to the data - what happens when companies or foreign governments with ties to this government want access to the data?

Such a large repository of information is implicitly a massive target for fraudsters. By centralising all the data, I predict that identity theft type crime will increase rather than decrease.

The London School of Economics has just finished analysing what the true costs of the scheme would be. Their findings were that the costs would be between £12bn and £18bn over ten years- twice to three times the government's estimate. This would make the cost per person between £200 and £300 instead of the £96 the government estimates.

As for the supposed benefits of ID cards; how will they prevent terrorism? Those who are considered dangerous are already known about.
Tackling the 'problem' of illegal immigration? All asylum seekers are already issued with compulsory ID cards, so the situation would not change.
As for tackling organised crime; where is the evidence that ID cards can change anything?
Spain has had compulsory ID cards since the 1930s, but these have not solved the social ills the government claims will dissolve under the might of ID cards.