Damian Green MP

Damian Green MP (Conservative) for Ashford. Conservative shadow minister for immigration Member of EURIM. A former financial journalist.

Digital Economy Bill

To the best of ORG's knowledge, this MP has not yet been spoken to about the Digital Economy Bill.

Surgeries

Add details here

Identity cards

Against ID Cards.

Damian Green told the Guardian it is time for the government to scrap its plans for ID cards. 16 May 2008

"Yet another nail in this particular coffin affecting government, because the basses of arguments for an ID cards scheme, for a biometric id card scheme, is that its fool proof, that you can actually solve benefit fraud, terrorism, serious crime, all those things because once you have established an identity that it. Well what this report done by a group of independent experts appointed by the home office its self shows us is that there will always errors, they say, and not just human errors, not just people entering data wrongly, but actual technical errors in the biometric matching between your card and your identity on the national identity register and your self ... What's interesting is that the government hasn't made it any kind of provision for this and has not decided what level of error it will permit where one percent, five percent, ten percent would be permissible and if I am being cynical about this I am not surprised the government has not this issue because in addressing that issue it has to admit that these mistakes will be made and that therefore if they are going to rely completely on a id system to allow people to establish there identity then for some people this will cause untold misery because there will be mistakes. They're identity will have disappeared or will have been assigned to some one else. .... I think this is a devastating report for future the scheme ...
... Well if they made us more secure then there would be a case for them but through out the debate on biometric identity cards the government has switched the reasons for introducing them they swivel between benifit fraud, between stopping crime stopping international terrorism and at every point we discover that this is not a magic bullet, this is not the fool proof method.

Damian Green, shadow immigration minister, said 23 January 2008

"They are trying to introduce ID cards by stealth by making them necessary if you want to work for the government, take out a student loan or open a student bank account."
"This is blackmail and a desperate attempt to bolster a failing policy."


The Conservatives, shadow home office minister Damian Green said talking about the PM's response to the ID card petition 20 February 2007

"It flatly goes against all the undertakings the government gave Parliament during the course of the bill.
"Obviously it has huge implications for people's privacy if the authorities are going to be allowed to go on a fishing expedition through the files of innocent people.
"Everyone assumes that fingerprint technology is 100% accurate. And it just isn't, experience tells us that it's not infallible.
"With the vast number of crimes involved, it is guaranteed there are going to be miscarriages of justice if the government goes down this route."

While seeking more information Damian Green asked. 29 October 2007

My first question relates to the use of documents in the proposed national identity register. When the information is destroyed—for which the group of amendments would provide—will it be removed altogether from the national identity register? If the intention is to destroy sensitive personal information, it will be more reassuring for those to whom it refers to know that no traces of it exist anywhere on a register, which many of us believe will be a honeypot to hackers, and a principal target of global attack by hackers who may have nefarious purposes, such as fraud, in mind.
My second question is about the spread of information around Departments. The national identity register is a compendium of three different Government computer systems—if they all talk to each other. That is a large assumption, but I shall make it for the purposes of the debate. Is it the intention to add the new biometric information to all three systems that will form the national identity register? What tests have been conducted to ensure that that is technically possible? I appreciate that those are technical questions about the future, but the Minister will understand the thrust of the point: even though he has restricted the Home Secretary's powers, which is good, genuine, serious questions remain about the proposal's practicality. I hope that he can tackle them.

House of Commons debate Use and retention of information 29 October 2007

My first question relates to the use of documents in the proposed national identity register. When the information is destroyed—for which the group of amendments would provide—will it be removed altogether from the national identity register? If the intention is to destroy sensitive personal information, it will be more reassuring for those to whom it refers to know that no traces of it exist anywhere on a register, which many of us believe will be a honeypot to hackers, and a principal target of global attack by hackers who may have nefarious purposes, such as fraud, in mind.
My second question is about the spread of information around Departments. The national identity register is a compendium of three different Government computer systems-if they all talk to each other. That is a large assumption, but I shall make it for the purposes of the debate. Is it the intention to add the new biometric information to all three systems that will form the national identity register? What tests have been conducted to ensure that that is technically possible? I appreciate that those are technical questions about the future, but the Minister will understand the thrust of the point: even though he has restricted the Home Secretary's powers, which is good, genuine, serious questions remain about the proposal's practicality. I hope that he can tackle them

Id Cards are also been forced on children of British citizens who have commonwealth citizenship and the right of abode in order for them to work even though they are suppose to be free of immigration control or at least under the law !

DNA database

DNA retention hampers policing 31 December 2009

A smaller, targeted DNA database would not only be a more effective tool in crime-fighting it would act as a sign that the creeping expansion of the surveillance state was being reversed. In this instance civil liberties and the real interests of the police point in the same direction. The only people who still need convincing are current Home Office ministers, and the senior ranks of the police.

Damian Green claims DNA record victory 20 Augugst 2009

The police have now agreed that they will delete my DNA fingerprint and my police national computer record as I have been requesting ever since I was cleared."
... "small but significant victory for freedom and privacy in this country - but what is really important now is that I don't get special treatment just because I am a public figure".
"There are hundreds of thousands of other people who were in the same position as me... where they are completely innocent and yet the police are going to hang on forever to all their details."
"I just think that's intolerable in a democratic society. People have a democratic right to privacy and the law needs to be changed."

Damian Green, the Tory home affairs spokesman, said 30 January 2007

"It is outrageous that so many people are on this database when there is no statutory basis for it."
"The Government is introducing a surveillance society by stealth. We need a proper national and parliamentary debate on this vital issue."

Written question Genetics: Databases 1 October 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of individuals on the DNA database are under 16; and if she will make a statement.

Written question DNA Database 11 December 2006

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will publish the guidance issued by his Department on the release of information from the National DNA Database to overseas police authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Damian Green MP said 4 January 2006

(at the time of this quote he was the Conservative Home Affairs spokesman)
"We do have concerns about the Government including on the database the DNA and fingerprints of completely innocent people. More than 100,000 law-abiding citizens have been added to the database since last year even though they have not been charged with a crime." "We need a proper public debate about whether we should be building up such a huge database. If the Government wants a database which has the details of everyone, not just criminals, they should be honest about it and not construct it by stealth."

Children's Digital Rights

PC Pro Schools fingerprinting kids without parents' consent 11 April 2007

"We need a code of practice to stop schools taking this most private information without even asking parents,"
"We also need to ensure that the information is not available to hackers or outside bodies, and that the information will be destroyed when pupils have left the school."

"If parents have given permission, this is acceptable, but only on strict conditions that every school should follow,"

Links

News

2009-08-20 - BBC - Tory MP claims DNA record victory
Summary: A Tory MP has claimed a "small but significant victory for freedom" after police agreed to delete his DNA record. But Damian Green says he wants the same right extended to all innocent people on the police database - rather than "special treatment" for public figures.
2008-01-24 - The Guardian - No student loan without ID card, says government
Author: Anthea Lipsett
Summary: Students will be "blackmailed" into holding identity cards in order to apply for student loans, the Tories have warned. According to Home Office documents leaked to the Conservative party last night, those applying for student loans will be forced to hold identity cards to get the funding from 2010. ... Shadow immigration minister Damian Green called the plans "straightforward blackmail" to bolster "a failing policy". "This is an outrageous plan. The government has seen its ID cards proposals stagger from shambles to shambles. They are clearly trying to introduce them by stealth."
2008-01-24 - Daily Express - Students will be bribed to accept the first ID Cards
Author: Tom Whitehead
Summary: Students are to be "blackmailed" into having ID cards, the Tories warned yesterday. Without them they would be unable to open bank accounts or access loans, it was claimed. ...

On the targeting of young people, Shadow Immigration Minister Damian Green said: "This is an outrageous plan."

2008-01-24 - Silicon - Students revolt against being ID card "guinea pigs"
Author: Nick Heath
Summary: Students have launched a stinging attack on UK government proposals to make young people "guinea pigs" for ID cards. ... The National Union of Students (NUS) described the revelation in the leaked National Identity Scheme Delivery Strategy document as "morally reprehensible" and said it would bog students down in red tape. ... Shadow immigration minister, Damian Green, said: "The government are clearly trying to introduce the cards by stealth. This is straightforward blackmail and a desperate attempt to bolster a failing policy."
2008-01-24 - The Mirror - ID cards by 2010..but just for students
Author: Bob Roberts
Summary: Students are to be "blackmailed" into carrying ID cards two years before the rest of Britain, leaked papers revealed last night. Shadow immigration minister Damian Green said: "This is an outrageous plan. The Government have seen their ID proposals stagger from shambles to shambles. They are trying to introduce them by stealth by making them necessary if you want to work for the Government, take out a student loan or open a student bank account."
2008-01-23 - Daily Mail - Youngsters to be 'blackmailed' into getting identity cards
Author: James Slack
Summary: Young people who want to open bank accounts will be "blackmailed" into having ID cards by 2010, leaked documents revealed last night. Anyone aged 16 or over will be expected to obtain a card - costing up to £100 - when they first open an account or apply for a student loan to get through university. ... Tory immigration spokesman Damian Green called the plans "straightforward blackmail" to bolster "a failing policy". He added: "The Government have seen their ID cards proposals stagger from shambles to shambles. They are clearly trying to introduce them by stealth."
2008-01-23 - The Financial Times - Companies abandon ID card project
Author: Maija Palmer and Jimmy Burns
Summary: The IT services company Accenture and the defence company BAE Systems have decided not to pursue contracts linked to the biometric identity card system, with IT experts warning that some suppliers are growing increasingly frustrated with the government’s indecision. ... Last night the Home Office confirmed a further leak suggesting that smaller volumes of ID cards should first be issued from 2010 onwards to young people to "assist" them in opening up their first bank accounts as well as to individuals employed in "positions of trust", such as teachers and social workers. ... Damian Green, shadow immigration minister, said last night that the leaked documents showed that the government was engaged in an "outrageous plan" which was "staggering from shambles to shambles". Mr Green said: "They are trying to introduce ID cards by stealth by making them necessary if you want to work for the government, take out a student loan or open a student bank account." "This is blackmail and a desperate attempt to bolster a failing policy."
2007-05-19 - The Telegraph - ID cards 'will be gold standard for forgers'
Author: Philip Johnston
Summary: Criminals will target ID cards as the gold standard of identity theft, a police chief said yesterday. The assumption that they are foolproof will make them more enticing for forgers, said Colin Langham-Fitt, acting chief constable of Suffolk. He also questioned the erosion of individual liberties and privacy. Damian Green, the Tory immigration spokesman, said: "This is yet another IT shambles from the Government with serious implications for security." Mr Green added: "This Government cannot even run a simple online visa application system without betraying all the sensitive information." "What hope has it got of protecting the integrity of the National Identity Card Register?"
2007-05-18 - The Register - FCO to probe visa security lapse
Author: Mark Ballard
Summary: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has closed its online service for visa applicants from India while it investigates a security breach that made the personal details of visa applicants available online. ... Damian Green, Conservative shadow immigration minister, said the screw-up didn't bode well for the government's identity plans. "This government cannot even run a simple online visa application system without betraying all the sensitive information. What hope has it got of protecting the integrity of the National Identity Card Register which will hold dozens of pieces of sensitive information of every adult in the country?" he said in a statement.
2007-04-11 - PC Pro - Schools fingerprinting kids without parents' consent
Author: Nicole Kobie
Summary: As many as three-quarters of school authorities allow students' fingerprints to be held in databases - for use as identification for libraries and canteens - according to Conservative Party data. ... "We need a code of practice to stop schools taking this most private information without even asking parents," Shadow home affairs minister Damian Green said in media reports. "We also need to ensure that the information is not available to hackers or outside bodies, and that the information will be destroyed when pupils have left the school." "If parents have given permission, this is acceptable, but only on strict conditions that every school should follow," said Green. The Conservatives said all information should be encrypted so children can not be identified using the fingerprint database, and all information should be destroyed when the child leaves the school.
2007-04-09 - The Independent - Schools may fingerprint six million children
Author: Nigel Morris
Summary: Almost six million children at 17,000 schools could have their fingerprints taken, intensifying fears of the growth of a "surveillance society" where personal information is gathered from cradle to grave. ... Damian Green, Tory home affairs spokesman, said: "This is very disturbing. Most parents would be horrified to know their children might be fingerprinted without their knowledge and without knowing what happens to that information in the future. As a country we need to wake up to what's happening - we're getting more and more surveillance of our lives without a proper public debate about what's happening." ... Phil Booth, spokesman for the NO2ID group, said: "As fears grow about adults' biometrics being taken, now the next generation is being targeted before it even leaves primary school." Pippa King, a Hull teacher who is campaigning for tighter controls on fingerprinting in schools, said: "Our children are going to grow up in a world where biometrics are very important. They need to know they have to be careful with their personal information and be in control of it. I don't think making children desensitised to that is a good thing." Seventy-nine MPs of all parties have signed a Commons motion registering alarm at the growth in numbers of schools collecting biometric data.
2007-02-20 - The Guardian - Blair under fire over police access to ID card database
Summary: Tony Blair faced fresh criticism over identity cards today after saying that the police would be able to use the national database to check fingerprints found at crime scenes. Damian Green, the shadow junior Home Office minister, said that Mr Blair's comments went "flatly" against the government's undertakings to parliament. "Obviously, it has huge implications for people's privacy if the authorities are going to be allowed to go on a fishing expedition through the files of innocent people," he said.
2007-01-30 - Telegraph - More than 3m on DNA 'stealth' database
Author: John Steele
Summary: The Government was accused last night of creating a "surveillance society by stealth" after figures showed that police have put more than 3.3 million people on the national criminal DNA database. ... Damian Green, the Tory home affairs spokesman, said: "It is outrageous that so many people are on this database when there is no statutory basis for it." "The Government is introducing a surveillance society by stealth. We need a proper national and parliamentary debate on this vital issue."
2006-01-05 - Conservatives - Government must be honest about DNA database
Summary: Conservatives have called on the Government to be more open about policy on genetic profiling after new figures revealed a rapid rise in the number of people included on Britain's national DNA database. While acknowledging its use as a "powerful tool" in the fight against crime, Shadow Home Affairs Minister Damian Green expressed concern that details of law-abiding citizens were being included in the DNA recording process. ... However, he expressed alarm at the pace at which the database is growing, and stressed: "We do have concerns about the Government including on the database the DNA and fingerprints of completely innocent people. More than 100,000 law-abiding citizens have been added to the database since last year even though they have not been charged with a crime."
2004-01-19 - The Guardian - Clarke faces first test over ID card vote
Author: Gaby Hinsliff
Summary: Up to 30 Labour MPs are expected to vote against ID cards, while a clutch of senior Tories will swell the rebellion in the first challenge to Michael Howard's parliamentary authority since he became party leader. ... A handful of influential Tories, including the former shadow cabinet minister Damian Green and Howard's former cabinet colleague Peter Lilley, are also expected to defy the whip and vote against it. Some Tories had pushed for their leader to oppose the bill on grounds of cost and civil liberties, but Howard personally favours ID cards.


Retrieved from "https://wiki.openrightsgroup.org/w/index.php?title=Damian_Green_MP&oldid=33431"