Australians to Get Compulsory Photo ID Smartcard

syousef writes "The Sydney morning herald reports that a new national ID card will be issued in Australia."From 2010 people will not be able to receive government health and welfare payments without a card. People may choose to have other information stored on the card, such as health and emergency contact details which, for example, ambulance officers could use.". Your papers please."

Comments

Dumb.

[Whiney Mac Fanboy]

I'm not particularly opposed to ID cards (They've been compulsory for sometime where I am in Europe - with no loss to my freedom that I can discern). However, statements such as:

The Prime Minister, John Howard, said the Government had considered a national identity card after last year's London bombings but in the end it "was not predisposed to adopt a national ID card".

Are just plain stupid. Perhaps the Prime Minister, John Howard is unaware that the London Bombers were all British citizens and would have been eligible for identity cards had Britain been using them. More likely however he is a typical Western fear mongering politician.

Oh - and the summary headline "Australians to Get Compulsory Photo ID Smartcard" seems to be incorrect. Quoting the linked article:

From 2010 people will not be able to receive government health and welfare payments without a card.

My understanding is that Australia does have a reasonable health & welfare system, so thats a big carrot (stick?) to wave. But it's still not compulsory.

Re:Dumb.

[SQL Error]

No.

You need the card to get government health and welfare benefits.

If you have private health insurance or money, you don't need the card.

If you don't like having to carry an ID card, don't rely on government benefits.

Re:Dumb.

[the_unknown_soldier]

Currently private health insurance requires a medicare card, Its a pretty safe assumption that under the new system the new card will be needed in order to get insurance.

Re:Fritz Lang's M

[Whiney Mac Fanboy]

I'm also very concerned to see whether or not the Aboriginal peoples [hreoc.gov.au] of Australia will be forced to carry this card.

A few points:

1) Aboriginal means "Original inhabitant." If you're going to use that term, please prefix it with "Australian" (lest we think you're talking about the Orang Asli, Samis or other aboriginal cultures.

2) Noone is being forced to carry the card (at least noone is suggesting that yet - you will just need to possess this card to access certain government provided services.

Try not to rely on slashdot summaries - they're frequently extremely misleading.

Re:Identity Track Creep

[ExKoopaTroopa]

living in Belgium were having your ID card on you all the time is mandatory, let me say this. It's better than having no ID at all. There are many situation where having an official ID card to prove who you are is very pratical, like when I go to the bank to open an account, when I buy a house, when the police stop me I produce my ID and don't have to go down to the station to prove who I am... Having a mandatory ID card is not an invasion of my privacy, there are more chances of spooks tracking my phone, my bank card/ credit card, hell even email account.

Re:Fritz Lang's M

[Bromskloss]

the famous German film M

The film (original version from 1931) can be downloaded from our friends at archive.org.

So put the lights out...
M - Eine Stadt sucht einen Moerder

no GST, No ID Card

[pbjones]

This PM promised that there would never be a GST, so saying it's not an ID card does not suprise anyone in Oz. Just because he doesn't call it an ID card, doesn't mean that it doesn't function like one. An Election is due in a year so let the voters decide.

Re:The Letter of the Law?

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm interested in what the law of Australia states. Would it be possible for someone to be arrested simply because they don't have their ID card?

Maybe if you had read the linked article, instead of frantically going for an apparently well thought out first post, you'd have read that it is NOT compulsory to carry the ID card in question at all times. In other words, you'll carry it when you expect you'll need it. I always carry my Medicare card and I will probably also always carry this ID card.

I am not worried about what the Australian government or police will do with this opportunity. I am however worried about the design and implementation of the technology. Regardless of whether the government develops the card and support system in-house or with contractors, they have a tendancy to fuck things like this up, with beurocratic bullshit getting in the way of proper design and implementation. Which I suppose is mostly typical of governments around the World.

I would really like to get my hands on one with some known details on the card to check it for myself. Hopefully the format of the data stored on the cards will be version numbered to allow automatic updates when needed at trusted points of use (hospitals, post offices, etc), so that the cards details can be updated to reflect critical changes in the back-end systems.

I'm an Australian

[xarium]

I'm an Australian. Most people posting comments above are not (a couple are). There are many confused or simply wrong statements being made. This new National ID card is the least intrusive attempt at one yet (there have been 2 previous attempts over the last 10 years).

So here are some answers to questions from above:

From 2010 people will not be able to receive government health and welfare payments without a card.
This statement, although true, is misleading. A MediCare card is required right now to receive gov health benefits. Welfare payments can only be paid to a person who can prove their identity and legal status. ie. birth-certificate required and "proof of age" card. This "National ID card" is nothing more than a unification of a system that has been in place for 20 years.

Perhaps the Prime Minister, John Howard is unaware that the London Bombers were all British citizens...
John Howard is a shifty little monarch who has a double-sided tongue. Before him, we had the greatest economist that ever lived, but because he was a social retard, people voted him out. Little Johnny is, sadly, now the best we've got.

Too bad you gave up your weapons
I can walk into a gun club right now (ok, when the shops are open) and order all sorts of guns and ammunition. I have to have a pretty good reason to take a gun out of a registered club though (eg. if I'm a farmer, a licensed shooter etc.). Psychopaths can't buy guns. Anybody with criminal (not property-related) felony-level convictions can't buy guns (DUI etc doesn't count). This is a good thing. We don't like small civil wars breaking out, like they do in the U.S. Besides, what good is a gun? It won't save me from having to pay taxes.

I have a Drivers License.
I have a MediCare card.
I have a Credit-Card whose every transaction over $100 gets reported to the Federal Government.
My Government does not ask me to be a certain religion. It does not ask me where my parents are from, or who I choose to call friends. It does not dictate how (or even if) I should school my children. It does not question my sexual orientation, nor judge me on it. Aside from preserving cultural heritage, it is not interested in the colour of my skin.
I am dependant on my Government continuuing to identify me as an Autralian Citizen whenever I may stand in need of help. I am 29 and I grew up with all these things. I have no problem with the National ID Card. I believe I am more free than most.

I believe I am more free than most, but more importantly; I am happy.