Whitehall moves to create 'superdatabase'

Daily Mail
Jan. 14, 2007

A huge Whitehall 'superdatabase' of people's personal details could be created in a bid to improve public services, it was revealed.

The move would mean relaxing regulations that restrict different parts of government from sharing information.

Minsters believe the current rules are overly tough, and changing them could help make the NHS and benefits system more efficient.

Individuals would only have to give their details once rather than handing them to a host of different agencies.

The process of notifying a loved one's death could also be made a lot simpler and less distressing for bereaved families.

However, the proposal is likely to encounter resistance from civil liberties groups who fear the creation of a 'Big Brother' state.

Information Commissioner Richard Thomas has already warned that Britain may be "sleepwalking into a surveillance society".

The database idea has emerged from the Government's policy review on public services, which is headed by Work and Pensions Secretary John Hutton.

So-called "citizens panels" will be used to gauge public reaction to relaxing privacy procedures.

Shadow home secretary David Davis said the database was likely to be a "white elephant" costing £20 billion.

He criticised the Government's record on managing databases, citing failures in the Sex Offenders Register, the Criminal Records Bureau, and the recent problems tracking criminal records from overseas.

He said the money could much better be spent on policing or border controls.

"The chances of it actually solving crimes is pretty small," he said.

"The chances of it costing over £20 billion is very high. It will be a white elephant."

"We could spend that money much better: on border controls, policing - you name it."