IT IS now clear the Government is going to press ahead with its ID card scheme and, despite an election promise, these are to be compulsory for everyone who has a passport.

Soon, to get your passport, people will be required to attend an interrogation centre where they will be fingerprinted and questioned about personal details as though they are criminals.

People will then be given a number and entered on the Government's Big Brother database, the National Identity Register, where a whole variety of organisations will be able to view their personal details.

Clearly it will not be long before carrying an ID card becomes compulsory and a whole range of people will be able to demand to see it.

The cost of this huge computer scheme will, as usual, grow to a massive sum, diverting our taxes into a black hole.

Each new ID passport will cost £93, which will mean a bill of £372 for a family with two children.

However, people can renew their passport at any time, no matter how long it still has to run.

Many people are renewing their passport now, allowing them to save £42 per passport and avoiding an intrusive interview and having an identity card forced on them for the next 10 years well after the next election.

Ron Kipps, Christchurch Road, Dartford