I S S N 0726-3244
G
Commonwealth o f A u s t r a l i a 1985
The views expressed i n t h i s paper a r e t h o s e o f t h e a u t h o r and do n o t
n e c e s s a r i l y r e f l e c t those of t h e L e g i s l a t i v e Research S e r v i c e , o r t h e
Department o f t h e Par1 iamentary L i b r a r y .
Pub1 i s h e d by t h e Department of t h e Par1 iamentary L i b r a r y , J u l y 1985.
Printed by C. J. THOMI~SON,Commonwealth Government Printer, Canberril
CONTE~T$
The Australia Card Proposal 3
The Type o f Identity Card 5
Uses and A~vantages o f Identl'ty Cards 6
Comments Supporting the Introduction o f Identity Cards 7
Arguments Against Identity Cards: Phi 'sosophical 8
Case
Study
- possible wider uses
o f specific purpose cards 11
The Dehumanising Effect 12
Arguments Against I ~ ~ Cards:
~ ~ ~~ ~ ia ~ ~t ~y12
cal
Costs 12
Forgeries 13
Specific Purpose Identity Cards 13
Social Security Fraud 14
Concl usi on 14
Methods o f Identifying Social Welfare Recipients in Selected
Countries 17
Arguments Related to Tax Evasion (Michael Peacock) 18
- 1
I d e n t i t y Cards
-
The M a j o r I s s u e s
INTRODUCTION
One o f t h e hardy p e r e n n i a l s
i s t h e i s s u e o f whether o r
w i t h i d e n t i t y cards.
Every
f o r i d e n t i t y o r I D cards t o
t o a p a r t ic u l a r p r o b l em.
of
not
so
be
A u s t r a l i a n p o l i t i c s and p u b l i c debate
A u s t r a l i a n c i t i z e n s s h o u l d be i s s u e d
o f t e n someone i n t h e community c a l l s
issued, d e s c r i b i n g them as t h e answer
T h i s paper seeks t o c o n t r i b u t e t o t h e c u r r e n t debate b y
p r e s e n t i n g same o f t h e m a j o r issues.
The f i r s t p a r t i d e n t i f i e s t h e
f a c t o r s which have generated t h e p r e s e n t p u b l i c debate.
Then f o l l o w s
an o u t l i n e o f t h e Commmonwealth's p r o p o s a l s f o r a n a t i o n a l
i d e n t i f i c a t i o n scheme, c a l l e d t h e A u s t r a l i a Card. The d i s c u s s i o n t h e n
t u r n s f r o m t h e s p e c i f i c proposal t o t h e i s s u e s which r e l a t e t o any
p l a n f o r I D cards, n a t i o n a l i d e n t i f i c a t i o n systems, A u s t r a l i a Cards o r
whatever t h e y may be c a l l e d ,
F i r s t , t h e r e i s d i s c u s s i o n o f t h e uses
and advantages o f such a system and a r e v i e w o f t h e o p i n i o n s o f t h o s e
who support o r do n o t oppose t h e i d e a o f a l l A u s t r a l i a n s b e i n g i s s u e d
w i t h i d e n t i t y cards.
Second'lly, t h e paper c o n s i d e r s t h e arguments and
o p i n i o n s o f opponents o f any such n a t i o n a l system o f i d e n t i f i c a t i o n .
F i n a l l y , t h e r e are two appendices:
one d i s c u s s i n g m e t h o d s o f
i d e n t i f y i n g s o c i a l w e l f a r e r e c i p i e n t s i n s e l e c t e d overseas c o u n t r i e s ;
and t h e o t h e r , t h e use o f ID c a r d s t o reduce t a x avoidance.
5ACK~RO~~~
There have been t h r e e f a c t o r s which have prompted t h e c u r r e n t debate
on I D cards.
F i r s t , David Simmons, M.P., moved t h e f o l l o w i n g r e s o l u t i o n a t
t h e meeting o f t h e Federal ALP Caucus on 7 May 1985:
T h a t t h e Government e x a m i n e t h e f e a s i b i l i t y o f i s s u i n g
p h o t o g r a p h i c i d e n t i t y c a r d s t o a l l A u s t r a l i a n c i t i z e n s and
p e r m a n e n t r e s i d e n t s as a p o s i t i v e means o f c o m b a t t i n g
fraudulent
practices
in
Commonwealth
Government
adnii n is t r a t ion e [X 1
I n s u p p o r t i n g t h e r e s o l u t i o n M r Simmons made t h e f o l l o w i n g
points, i n t e r a l i a :
t h e use o f i d e n t i t y c a r d s o f one s o r t o r a n o t h e r i s now
r e q u i r e d b y many g o v e r n m e n t s t h r o u g h o u t t h e war1 d
i n c l u d i n g Canada, Denmark, West Germany, Sweden and t h e
United States;
t h e i s s u e and use o f i d e n t i t y c a r d s w i l l c r e a t e problems
o f a c h i e v i n g a b a l a n c e b e ~ w e e ne f f i c i e n c y and i n d i v i d u a l
p r i vacy ;
1,
David Simmons, M.Pe,
1985
P
L e t t r t o Members o f ALP Caucus,
26 A p r i l
- 2 -
Identity Cards
e
e
-
The Major Issues
i t should not be compulsory t o carry the c a r d ;
Australians are now used t o carrying various cards and
forms of identification; and
the card could be used in the following situations - using
Government s e r v i c e s such as l e g a l a i d , obtaining
pensi ons and benefits begi nni ng empl oyment., openi ng and
changi ng bank accounts
e
Secondly, Mr Eric R-isstrom, Secretary o f t h e Taxpayers
Association, has in recent times been campaigning f o r the introduction
of an identity card as a means of' reducing t a x avoidance.
Mr
Risstrom's arguments are discussed in the body of the paper.
Thirdly, the recently published White Paper Reform o f the
r a i s e d t h e s u b j e c t o f ID c a r d s .
In i t s
dance, the White Paper suggests t h a t , in the
search for ways t o reduce avoidance,
consideration m i g h t also be
given t o
the introduction of a n a t i o n a l identification system,
i n v o l v i n g the issue o f a unique .identity card t o individuals' .[2]
...
l o a a
THE AUSTRAL KA CARD PROPOSAL
On Monday, 24 June 1985, the Federal Cabiriet considered a report from
a n Interdepartmental Committee ( l D C ) formed t o consider t h e
introduction o f a national identity card system. The XDC comprised
representatives from the Tax Office and the Departments o f Prime
Minister a n d Cabinet , Treasury, Social S e c u r i t y , Health,
According t o
Attorney-General and Immigration and Ethnic Affairs.
newspaper reports during the week before the Cabinet meeting the I D C
report covered, i n t e r a l i a : t a x benefits which might be gained from
the introduction--"%i-"TD card; the ' c o s t ' o f the loss of civil
l i b e r t i e s ; w h a t supporting legislation would be required; and possible
uses for the ID card, such as when opening new bank accounts.
O n 21 June 1985, the
reported t h a t
Minister for Health- Hon. Neal Blewett, M.P., had been qiven charqe of
the identity card project. This move "was apparently the result 6f Dr
Blewett's role in the successfu'l introduction of the Medicare Card in
1984 by the Health Insurance Commission, During the period September
1983 t o February 1984, 95 per cent of Australians had enrolled with
Medicare and had received a Medicare Card.
A t the afternoon se sion o f the Tax Summit on Tuesday, 2 July
t~~'s
f o r a national
1985, Dr Elewett presented ,the C ~ m m o ~ i w e a ~proposal
identity card.
I n an explanatory booklet the Commonwealth out1 ined
i t s proposal s :
n ~~ x a t i oS ny ~ t ~ tWhite
n~
.___
Paper, AGPS,
- 3 I d e n t i t y Cards
-
The Major I s s u e s
The concept i s simple. A system which i s a n a t i o n a l r e g i s t e r
o f a l l A u s t r a l i a n s , designed t o a s s i s t w i t h i d e n t i f i c a t i o n .
I t would p r o v i d e e v e r y a d u l t w i t h a personal card, s i m i l a r t o
a Medicare card o r c r e d i t card, c o n t a i n i n g o n l y basic
in f o r m a t ion :
name, id e n t i f ic a t ion number a n d c o l o u r
photograph,
W h i l s t a s s i s t i n g t h e government t o e s t a b l i s h r e c o r d s and
v e r i f y i n f o r m a t i o n , t h e c a r d would n o t r e v e a l any more t h a n
that.
I n t h i s way t h e p r i v a c y o f every i n d i v i d u a l would be
maintained.
The p r i n c i p a l o b j e c t i v e s o f t h e system and t h e c a r d would be
to:
e
G e n e r a l l y a s s i s t government agencies t o c a r r y o u t
t h e i r f u n c t i o n s more e f f e c t i v e l y .
I n particular,
p r e v e n t o r reduce t h e i n c i d e n c e o f : t a x avoidance
and e v a s i o n - i n c o r r
Aid the f i g h t
t r a f f i c k i ng.
against
o r g a n i s e d c r i m e and d r u g
I n t h e l o n g e r term, r a t i o n a l i s e t h e many government
i d e n t i f i c a t i o n systems c u r r e n t l y i n o p e r a t i o n and
s i m p 1 i f y d e a l i n g s w i t h g o v e r n m e n t f o r a1 1
Austral ians.
The s y s t e m c o u l d b e o p e r a t e d b y t h e H e a l t h I n s u r a n c e
Commission, w h i c h c u r r e n t l y a d m i n i s t e r s t h e M e d i c a r e
programs [3]
The B e n e f i t s
The system c o u l d a i d i d e n t i f i c a t i o n f o r t a x , . s o c i a l s e c u r i t y ,
empl oyment and o t h e r purposes.
T h i s would make i t e a s i e r t o t r a c k t a x evaders and a l s o
reduce h e a l t h and w e l f a r e f r a u d .
And w i t h a f u l l y o p e r a t i o n a ~ system, t h e r e d u c t i o n i n t a x
e v a s i o n a l o n e c o u l d be up t o $800 m i l l i o n p e r y e a r s
It c o u l d a l s o h e l p d e t e c t il
employment o p p o r t u n i t i e
t s and open up
T h i s would l e a d t o s u ~ ~ t a ~ r~e dt ui cat i o~n s i n t h e payment of
unempl oyment an o t h e r b e n ~ f i t s ~
3,
A u s t r a l i a Car
- 4 I d e n t i t y Cards
-
The Major Issues
And because t h e d a t a on a l l A u s t r a l i a n s would be complete,
t o t a l l y up t o d a t e and a v a i l a b l e f r o m a s i n g l e source, t h e
community as a whole would b e n e f i t f r o m t h e e l i m i n a t i o n o f
much d u p l i c a t i o n o f e f f o r t by government agencies.
The system c o u l d a l s o p r o v i d e improved demographic d a t a t o
a l l o w f o r much b e t t e r p l a n n i n g of community s e r v i c e s .
T h i s r e g i s t e r c o u l d t a k e on e v e n more s i g n i f i c a n c e i n
emergencies.
Through t h e system, arrangements m i g h t be made
t o p r o v i d e h o s p i t a l and o t h e r emergency s e r v i c e s w i t h
1 if e-savi ng in f ormat ion a t a moment ' s n o t i c e : b l ood groups,
o r g a n d o n o r s , n e x t o f k i n and name o f f a m i l y d o c t o r .
Information t h a t i s v i t a l .
D i a b e t i c s c o u l d be q u i c k l y
i d e n t i f i e d , as c o u l d people w i t h r a r e diseases o r t h o s e
r e q u i r i n g s p e c i a l medication.
.cardho'l der. [4]
The proposal f o r t h e A u s t r a l i a Card a l s o e s t i m a t e d t h e
f i n a n c i a l c o s t s and savings a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n o f an
i d e n t i t y card. Tax savings were e s t i m a t e d as $150111 i n t h e f i r s t year,
$450~1i n t h e second year, $750m i n t h e t h i r d y e a r and $800m i n each
subsequent year.
O t h e r s a v i n g s .in government e x p e n d i t u r e , t h e
proposal continues, would accrue from t h e r e d u c t i o n i n unerripl oyment
I and
o t h e r we1 f a r e b e n e f 1 t c o s t s ' ,. e53
As we1 1 , g o v e r n m e n t
i d e n t i f i c a t i o n s y s t e m s c o u l d be r a t i o n a l i s e d , t h e r e b y r e d u c i n g
a d m i n i s t r a t i v e costs.
The establishment and o p e r a t i n g c o s t s o f t h e A u s t r a l i a Card,
as e s t i m a t e d by t h e H e a l t h Insurance Commission are, i n 1985 terms,
$38m f o r e s t a b l i s h m e n t and annual o p e r a t i n g c o s t s o f $49~1. The
e s t i m a t e o f c o s t s i s accompanied by t h e r i d e r t h a t t h e y may v a r y f r o m
t h e e s t i m a t e s because t h e y 'will be d e endent upon t h e implementation
s t r a t e g y decided by t h e Par1 iament [ 6
e
P
The proposal document t h e n d e s c r i b e s how t h e A u s t r a l i a Card
system w i 11 operate:
I n most cases, cards would be i s s u e d t o t h e i n d i v i d u a l s
concerned f r o m Medicare o f f i c e s .
T h i s would p r o t e c t p r i v a c y ,
ensure c o r r e c t d e l i v e r y and a l l o w r e c i p i e n t s t o check and
amend d e t a i l s on t h e spot.
Special arrangements c o u l d be
made f o r t h o s e who do n o t have ready access t o a Medicare
office,
- 5 I d e n t i t y Cards
The M a j o r I s s u e s
Having i d e n t i f i e d i n d i v i d u a l s , t h e Commission would w r i t e and
i n v i t e them t o c a l l a t a c o n v e n i e n t l o c a t i o n t o c o l l e c t t h e i r
A t t h i s t i m e a photograph would be t a k e n and a f f i x e d
card.
t o t h e card.
The d e t a i l s on t h e c a r d and i n t h e r e g i s t e r
would be checked and amended i f necessary. C h i l d r e n would be
recorded i n t h e r e g i s t e r b u t c a r d s g e n e r a l l y n o t i s s u e d f o r
them.
The r e g i s t e r c o u l d be updated w i t h i n f o r m a t i o n f r o m o t h e r
government
sources
and
cards
would
be
reissued
p e r i o d i c a l l y , [7]
A c c o r d i n g t o t h e ~ o m i n o ~ i w e a l t h ' sproposal ' t h e p r i v a c y and
s e c u r i t y o f an in d i v i dual ' s in f o r m a t ion w i 11 be paramount ' e [€I]T h i s
d i s c u s s i o n on p r i v a c y a n d s e c u r i t y s a i d t h a t t h e n a t i o n a l
i d e n t i f i c a t i o n system's r e g i s t e r w i l l c o n t a i n b a s i c i d e n t i f y i n g
as name, sex, d a t e o f b i r t h and address.
The
i n f o r m a t i o n suc
reg-i s t e r would o t in c l ude in f o r m a t i on f r o m o t h e r government sources
I t i s proposed t h a t t h e
such as medical and 'taxat on dataa.[9J
l e g i s l a t i o n needed t o esta .I i s h t h e A u s t r a l i a Card would ' t i g h t l y
d e f i n e t h e uses of t h e c a r d [:IO] One p a r t i c u l a r c l a i m made i n t h i s
s e c t i o n of t h e proposal i s ' t h e H e a l t h I n s u r a n c e Commission a l r e a d y
has a proven r e c o r d o f s e c u r i t y and -is t o t a l l y f a m i l i a r w i t h t h e need
t o p r o t e c t s e n s i t i v e da
ng t h e r e c e n t New South Wales
doctor's dispute the
---H e r a l d pub1 i s hed 1' n f o r m a t ion
c o n c e r n i ng t h e c l a i m s f o r Medicare b e n e f i t s made b y promi nent d o c t o r s .
Those d o c t o r s and t h e i r o r g a n i s a t i o n s accused t h e H e a l t h I n s u r a n c e
Commission o f beirig t h e source o f t h e j o u r n a l i s t s i n f o r m a t i o n b u t t h i s
smatter was never r e s o l ved.
F i n a l l y , i t i s w o r t h n o t i n g t h a t nowhere i n t h e . g l o s s y
book1 e t whi ch o u t 1 .ines t h e ~ o v ~ r n m e'ns t proposal for t h e A u s t r a l ia
Card, i s t h e t e r m i d e n t i f i c a t i o n c a r d or ID c a r d used.
T h i s perhaps
r e f l e c t s t h e Government's a p p r e c i a t i o n t h a t t h e t e r m I D c a r d i m p l i e s
t o sorne A u s t r a l i a n s a de f a c t o i n t e r n a l p a s s p o r t which must be c a r r i e d
a t a l l times and p r o d i ~ c ~ e m a n d ~
The use o f i d e n t i t y cards o f one s o r t or another i s r e q u i r e d by many
governments t h r o u g ~ o ~t ht e w o r ~ ~ G
* enerally, these f a 11 i n t o t h r e e
1
I)
7.
2
8-
2
a mu1t i - i ~ u r ~ o i ~d e n t i t y c a r d c o n t a i n i ng such personal
i n f o r m a t i o n as name, b i r t h ~ d a t esex,
~
m a r i t a l s t a t u s and
d Eric
sometimes a photo; s i m i l a r t o t h a t a d v ~ c a ~ e by
Risstrom;
Ibid 9 p e 6 e
I b i d 9 p.7.
Ibid., p.7.
9,
10,
1 1 e .ide,
J
P*l*
p.7.
- 6 -
Identity Cards .- The Major Issues
2.
a system of numbers usually linked t o a central computer
where the number on the card serves as a key t o more
detailed information and t o certain identification, as
exists i n USA; and
3.
specific purpose cards,
card.
l i k e the Australian Medicare
USES AND ADVANTAGES OF IDENTITY CARDS
Some countries enforce the universal use of identity cards for
internal security purposes and t o monitor the movement of i ndi vidual s
w i t h i n the country. They serve as internal passports and as an easy
means of identification of individuals i n t h e i r dealings w i t h the
State. In these circumstances identity cards may be a useful a i d i n
m a i n t a i n i n g law and order,
I n some countries identity cards are used t o obviate abuses
a t the ballot box by requiring citizens t o produce them before they
vote. They are also widely used for purposes of identification i n the
course of private commercial transactions - i n much the same way as a
d r i v e r ' s licence i s often demanded i n Australia as evidence of
identity when w r i t i n g cheques*
A system of numbers as a form of identification i s used i n
some countries for recipients o f social security benefits. The number
serves as identification and authentication of the recipient of the
pension or benefit and i s aimed a t preventing multiple registration
e i t h e r by using f a l s e names or by registering a t various offices.
This system i s also intended t o help i n speedier and more accurate
del i very of State services t o el i g i b l e c i t i nens and is p a r t i cul arly
useful where many citizens have the same name, e.g. Smith or Jones.
The advantages of identity cards arise from the purposes t o
which they are p u t i n any particular country:
e
e
e
i n countries such as the Federal Republic of Germany
they provide a means of checking on the movements of
individuals for internal security purposes;
i n South Africa they identify different racial groupings
and control the movements of non-whites;
.in the United States they are used t o register social
security accreditations; and
i n Israel they are used for internal security and t o
o b t a i n social security benefits.
I t can therefore
h a t the advantages would be perceived
extent t o w h i c h the S t a t e ' s r i g h t t o
i t s citizens i s ace
- 7 I d e n t i t y Cards
COMMENTS SUPPORTIIV
-
The M a j o r I s s u e s
THE I I V T ~-O ~ U ~ ~ IOF
O I IDENTITY
V
CARDS
Among t h o s e who do n o t s t r o n g l y oppose t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n i n t o A u s t r a l i a
of ID cards, t h e r e a r e two groups o f o p i n i o n : t h o s e who advocate t h e
and t h o s e who, w h i l e n o t d i r e c t l y
i n t r o d u c t i o n o f t h e I D cards;
a d v o c a t i n g such an a c t i o n , a r e n o t c o m p l e t e l y opposed t o t h e idea.
Both o f t h e s e groups appear t o b u i l d t h e i r o p i n i o n s f r o m t h e same
premise: t h a t A u s t r a l i a n s a l r e a d y c a r r y many forms o f i d e n t i f i c a t i o n
which t h e y may be r e q u i r e d t o produce.
M r E r i c Risstrom o f t h e
Taxpayers A s s o c i a t i o n i s quoted as saying, 'Everybody a l r e a d y has
c r e d i t c a r d s o r Medicare c a r d s and t h e l i k e , so what have t h e y g o t t o
fear?'[12]
T h i s a r g u m e n t was a l s o p r d m o t e d i n a n A u s t r a l i a n
e d i t o r i a l .[1.3]
The average A u s t r a l i a n t o d a y has a Medicare card, a Bankcard
and p r o b a b l y one or more o t h e r c r e d i t c a r d s i s s u e d b y
department s t o r e s , c r e d i t unions o r o r g a n i s a t i o n s such as
American Express or D i n e r s Club,
The A u s t r a l i a n T a x a t i o n
O f f i c e has a r e c o r d o f h i s i n c o m e and t a x - d e d u c t i b l e
e x p e n d i t u r e , and t h e I m m i g r a t i o n Department knows i f he has a
p a s s p o r t and has t r a v e l 1 ed overseas.
'The E l e c t o r a l O f f i c e
has a r e c o r d o f h i s address and occupation, and h i s S t a t e
Government k,nows i f he has a d r i v e r ' s l i c e n c e and owns a car.
It i s hard t o see how a s i n g l e c a r d b e a r i n g a photograph and
encoded w i t h i n f o r m a t i o n such a s address, t a x f i l e number and
perhaps blood t y p e c o u l d i n f r i n g e t h e ' l i b e r t i e s o f someone
about whom so much i s a l r e a d y known.
No proposal a l o n g t h e s e l i n e s c o u l d be t o t a l l y immune t o t h e
d e v i c e s o f determined cheats.
But i t would b e n e f i t t h e
m a j o r i t y of honest A u s t r a l i a n s a t no c o s t t o t h e i r c i v i l
liberties.
The Canberra Times e d i t o r i a l o f 7 June 1985 f o l l o w e d a
similar l i n e t o that
y M
r R i s s t r o m and t h e A u s t r a l i a n , when i t
advocated t h e use o f I D c a r d s f o r A u s t r a l i a n c,r't..izens. I t concluded,
C i t i z e n s i n a democracy have o b l i g a t i o n s as w e l l as r i g h t s ,
and i,t should be an o b l i g a t i o n t o c a r r y an i d e n t i t y card, n o t
o n l y t o p r e v e n t t h e u n p r i n c i p l e d from c h e a t i n g t h e system b u t
t o ensure t h a t people u n c o n s ~ ~ o u os r dead a f t e r an a c c i d e n t
can q u i c k l y be i d e n t i f i e d ,
Honest people would have n o t h i n g
t o .fear, b u t would b e n e f i t from an assurance t h a t o t h e r s a r e
n o t m i s u s i n g t a x p a ~ e r s ' funds or a v o i d i n g p a y i n g t h e i r share
o f the tax b i l l e
e r a l d , 5 June 1985, p.35,
--_I"..
13, A u s t r a l i a n , 8 May 1985,
12,
- 8 -
Identity Cards
The Major Issues
In its issue of 28 May 1985, the & quoted the views of
various people for and against identity cards, Among them was
PrOfeSSOr Colin Howard who, while not advocating identity cards did
not see them as significantly contributing to the invasion o f the
privacy of individuals, While supporters o f the ID cards quoted above
took the line that Australians were used to being asked t o identify
themselves, Professor Howard's argument was that government at a l l
levels, and i n all guises, already knows a great deal about all of us.
Therefore any new identity card would not really add a further threat
to our freedom. According to the Age,
I__
the whole debate is too late for Melbourne University's
Professor Colin Howard. He points to the innumerable ways we
are already on official social security and tax files,
electoral roll s, employment records - everything from birth
to death certificates.
.*.
'It is easy to get out o f touch with the times1 he says.
'The idea that in some sense we can preserve so'me sort of
privacy by not having ID cards seeins to be somewhat of an
i 1 1us ion.
'We have all been brought up t o believe that we live in the
best possible system, and nobody should tamper with it- Just
the very expression "ID card" puts people off. If: they were
called something else, it might not produce the same
reaction.'
Professor Howard says an ID card would not make it any easier
than now for a g o v e r n ~ e ~to
t abuse citizens' rightss. 'It is
o n l y the force of public opinion that keeps them in
-The so-called p h i ~ o s o ~ h i c aarguments
~
against. the introduction of
The first
identity cards for a l l Australians have two themes.
concerns the idea of ~ o v ~ r ~ massuming
e ~ t the role of 'Big Brother' and
the consequential invasion o f the civil rights of citizens as
Australia moves towards becoming a police stale. As will be obvious
From the reactions below, the advocacy o f ID cards attracts strong and
emotional responses, In a letter t o the editor o f the Australian, Run
Castan Q.C., President of the Victorian Council for Civil Liberties,
high1 ighted the major philosophical worries:
-
SIR
Your editorial ( ) ~ u p p o ~ t ~ the
n g introduction of
j~entification cards ~ ~ ~ ~ ean c appallin
t s
ly naive view of
the way in which b u r ~ a u ~ r a cfunction
i~~
~
14. -.-...-I
Age
May 1985.
- 9 I d e n t i t y Cards
-
The M a j o r I s s u e s
I n t o t a l i t a r i a n c o u n t r i e s one o f t h e most e f f e c t i v e means o f
control o f the population i s the monitoring o f every
c i t i z e n ' s a c t i v i t i e s , b y a process o f r e g i s t r a t i o n . I n o r d e r
t o undertake such a n i o n i t o r i n g e x e r c i s e i t , i s necessary t h a t
each person be i s s u e d w i t h a 'pass c a r d ' ( a s i n South
A f r i c a ) , o r an ' i n t e r n a l p a s s p o r t ' ( a s i n t h e S o v i e t Union).
T h i s must be produced on every occasion on which t h e c i t i z e n
changes r e s i d e n c e , t r a v e l s a c r o s s S t a t e or m u n i c i p a l
boundaries, has any d e a l i n g s w i t h any governmental agency o r
j o i n s any o r g a n i s a t i on.
C o n t r o l s on freedom o f movementg t h o u g h t and a c t i o n o f
c l ' t i zens c a n n o t b e e f f e c t I v e l y imp1 emented u n l e s s e a c h
c i t i z e n c a r r i e s a ' pass
The f i r s t stage i n t h e d e s t r u c t i o n o f t h e ' l i b e r t y o f t h e
individual i s the r e ( ~ u ~ r ~ m
t h ~a t~ ievery
t
person c a r r y t h e
' p a s s ' which can be r e q u i r e d ,to be produced on a l l occasions
desi red by t h e State.
Once such a system i s ~ n t r ~ d ~t h e~ occasions
~ d ,
f o r i t s use
w i 11 pro1 if e r a t e u Every g o v ~ ~ ~ i m ~ an r, ~t a n~sa
. ~t i on w i 11 find
i t necessary t o r e q u i r e p r o d u c t i o n o f t h e ' p a s s ' ,
And e v e r y
t i m e t h e pass i s produced, t h e computer r e c o r d s w i l l be
updated e
Your e d i t o r i a l SU g e s t s t h a t t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n of such c a r d s
w i l l o n l y a f f e c t ,the d i s h o n e s t and o n l y harm t h o s e who have
something t o h i d e s
The same argument i s p u t i n r e l a t i o n t o e v e r y proposed
i n t r u s i o n i n t o our c i v i l l i b e r t i e s e
The a r g u m e n t i s
s p u r i ous
Unless we a r e v i g i l a n t t o p r e v e n t t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f a
system which f a c i l i t a t e s t h e c o n t r o l o f o u r l i v e s by t h e
S t a t e , t h a t system, once ~ ~ t ~ o wd i l ul i~n e~v i tda b~l y l e a d t o
t h a t very c o n t r o l e
The i n t r o d u c t i o n o f t h e ' p a s s ' w i l l
i t s e l f become t h e reason f o r t h e use o f i t i n an o p p r e s s i v e
ma n n e r
I n c o n s ~ ~ e r i n SUG
g
a p ~ o p a s a ~ t h e fund~rnental s t a r t i n g
point. must be t h a t he b u r e a u ~ r a c yi s n o t t o be t r u s t e d . An
addi t i onal in s t runient for t h e c o n t r o l o f peopl e ' s 1 i ves
should n o t be placed i n t h e h
s of government upon t h e
assumption o f a r n ~ s p . ~ a c ~ d t h i n t h e a b i l i t y o f
~ o v e r n m ~ n t ~a ~u r e a u ~ ~ a c iteos admini s t e p such powers f a i r l y
and we1 1
~
I d e n t i t y Cards
individual.
systems.
10
-
The M a j o r I s s u e s
They a r e geared t o t h e promotion o f t h e i r own
The proposal f o r t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n o f a ' p a s s '
and should be r e s i s t e d a t a l l c o s t s . [ l 5 ]
i s outrageous
Opponents o f I D c a r d s f e a r t h a t i f t h e c a r d s a r e i n t r o d u c e d
f o r one o r two s p e c i f i c purposes, such as t o reduce s o c i a l s e c u r i t y
f r a u d o r t a x evasion, t h e number o f purposes f o r which t h e cards a r e
used w i l l i n c r e a s e r a p i d l y as o t h e r government agencies, and perhaps
non government o r g a n i s a t i o n s , r e a l i s e t h e v a l u e o f such a system o f
c e n t r a l i s e d i n f o r m a t i o n and data. 'The e x i s t e n c e and r a p i d improvement
i n computer t e c h n o l o g y adds t o t h e i r f e a r s :
The P r e s i d e n t o f t h e New South Wales Court o f Appeal, M r
J u s t i c e K i r b y , warns: 'What i s a t s t a k e i s n o t h i n g l e s s t h a n
t h e n a t u r e o f o u r s o c i e t y , and t h e power and a u t h o r i t y o f t h e
state i n r e l a t i o n t o the i n d i v i d u a l ' e
M r J u s t i c e K i r b y says t e c h n o l o g y has s t a r k l y thrown up key
' M i l l we r e t a i n o u r B r i t i s h
issues f o r our society.
'Or
t r a d i t i o n s and keep g r e a t power under c o n t r o l ? ' he asks.
w i l l we succumb t o t h e d e s t r u c t i o n o f personal autonomy and
p r i v a c y as a r e s u l t o f a f r i g h t e n i n g combination o f amazing
new t e c h n o l o g y and e n t h u s i a s t i c e f f i c i e n c y e x p e r t s who would
t h r o w away o u r f r e e d o m s ~ ' ~ 1 ~
I n p a s t y e a r s as a t t e n t i o n has focussed on o r g a n i s e d c r i m e i n
A u s t r a l i a , t h e suggestion has been made t h a t any a t t e m p t t o combat
s u c h c r i m e w o u l d b e made e a s i e r i f a l l A u s t r a l i a n s c a r r i e d
i d e n t i f i c a t i o n cards. This, f o r example, would make i t more d i f f i c u l t
t o o b t a i n a f a l s e passport.
I n h i s 1983 Royal Commission Report on
Drug T r a f f i c k i n g , M r J u s t i c e Stewart s a i d t h a t A u s t r a l i a had n o t
reached t h e s t a g e where t h e community would f i n d a compulsory system
o f i d e n t i f i c a t i o n acceptable.
According t o t h e -9Age M r J u s t i c e
S t e w a r t ' s views ' s t i l l s t a n d ' :
A t t h e moment a system o f compulsory i d e n t i f i c a t i o n cards,
a s t a t u t o r y requirement t h a t any c i t i z e n must be a b l e
produce s a t i s f a c t o r y i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , 'would be repugnant
many A u s t r a l i a n s as resembling t o o much t h e apparatus
d i c t a t o r s h i p 8e
or
to
to
of
O f course, t h e i d e a t h a t i d e n t i t y c a r d s c o n s t i t u t e a t h r e a t
t o personal 1 i b e r t i e s by ~ f f e r i n g o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r Government t o
c e n t r a l i s e a l l personal d a t a and u
i t wishes, i s n o t a r e c e n t
oneo I n a r e p o r t i n dune 1976 t h e
A d v i s o r y Committee on Fa1 se
158
16.
170
20 May 1985.
-
1985
e
I d e n t - i t y Cards
11
-
The M a j o r I s s u e s
I d e n t i f i c a t i o n i n t h e United States r e j e c t e d proposals f o r a n a t i o n a l
i d e n t i t y card,
One o f t h e grounds f o r r e j e c t i o n was t h a t i t
r e p r e s e n t e d an i n v a s i o n o f personal p r i v a c y , and d a t a r e q u i r e d f o r
c i t i z e n s h i p i d e n t i f i c a t i o n c o u l d be abused b y government o r p r i v a t e
interests.
I n A u s t r a l i a i n t h e 1 9 7 0 ~d ~u r i n g t h e debate p r e c e d i n g t h e
in t r o d u c t i on o f Medi bank t h e Commi t t e e o f Enqui ry in t o P r o t e c t i on of
P r i v a c y i n i t s Second I n t e r i m Report t o t h e t h e n Attorney-General,
Senator Murphy, looked a t v a r i o u s aspects o f proposed h e a l t h i n s u r a n c e
c a r d s and c o n s i d e r e d t h a t such d e t a i l s as d a t e o f b i r t h , sex, address
and s i g n a t u r e s h o u l d n o t a p p e a r b e c a u s e t h e y c o n s t i t u t e d a n
undesi r a b l e i n v a s i on o f p r i vacy.
It i s t h e e x i s t e n c e o f compu~er,ised d a t a banks t o which
i d e n t i t y c a r d s may be l i n k e d which c o n s t i t u t e s t h e m a j o r t h r e a t t o
A c a r d may have o n l y a s i m p l e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o r even a
privacy.
number b u t by means o f a computer l i n k much more d e t a i l e d i n f o r m a t i o n
can be r e a d i l y o b t a i n e d whether i t i s r e l e v a n t t o t h e purpose f o r
which t h e c a r d was presented or n o t B For i n s t a n c e , i n A u s t r a l i a
T a x a t i o n D e p a r t m e n t files a r e s a i d t o be c o n f i d e n t i a l b u t t h e
exempti ons under t h e s ~ c r ~p r oc v ~i s i ans o f t h e T a x a t i on Act i n c l ude
Boards o f Review, t h e R e p a ~ r i ~ t i oCommission,
n
t h e ~ i r e c t o r ~ ~ e n eo rf a ~
S o c i a l S e c u r i t y , t h e D i ~ ~ e c ~ ~ r - ~o ~f nH e arl tah ~and o t h e r s .
This
means t h a t in f ormat i on f r o m a v a r i e t y o f government departments coul d
~y
be pooled i n a way n o t o r ~ g i n a ~intended,
s of
--I n t h e USA, 98 p e r c e n t o f h ~ u s ~ h o l dhso l d s o c i a l s e c u r i t y cards.[18]
S o c i a l s e c u r i t y l ~ ~ ~ s ~ awas
t i of i rn s t passed i n 1935 and by t h e end o f
t h e f i r s t y e a r o f o p e r a t i o n 45 m-i 11 i o n s o c i a l s e c u r i t y accounts were
opened and numbers I'ssued t o account holders.
Because o f t h e
advantages a s s o c i a t e d w i t h p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n S o c i a l S e c u r i t y , t h e
number o f accounts r o s e q u i c k l y t o approximate t h e number o f employed
persons.
By mid-1983 t h e r e were 205 m i l l i o n a c t i v e accounts, each
w i t h a S o c i a l S e c u r i t y number and c a r d c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o it, Some 5,5
m i l l i o n new accounts a r e b e i n g cldded each year,
Because n e a r l y every
e c o n o m i c a l l y a c t i v e adu'lt i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s has a S o c i a l S e c u r i t y
number, t h e number i s i d e a l f o r o t h e r s u r v e i l l a n c e and management
purposes,
S i rice 1963. t h e I n t e r n a l Revenue S e r v i ce ( I R S ) has adopted
t h e use o f S o c i a l S e c u r i t y numbers f o r o r d e r i n g income t a x r e c o r d s and
for identifying t ~ ~ x p a ~ ~ r ~ * ~ ~ ~
The use o f a p e r s o n s ' s s o c i a l s e c u r i t y number as b o t h a means
o f i d e n t ~ f i ~ a t i oand
n
as a method
c o l l e c t i n g d a t a i s now much
g r e a t e r t h a n must ever have h
ed i n 1935, Some examples:
$ . B e
et al.
Identif i c a tion
and
Mass
I d e n t i t y Cards
12
-
The M a j o r I s s u e s
To open a bank account, one has t o quote o n e ' s s o c i a l
s e c u r i t y numbere The new account i s t h e n r e p o r t e d t o
and r e c o r d e d by t h e I R S .
The same occurs when a person buys shares.
e
Some US S t a t e s now use a p e r s o n ' s s o c i a l s e c u r i t y number
as t h e nurnber f o r t h e i r d r i v e r s l i c e n c e .
The second p h i l o s o p h i c a l o b j e c t i o n t o t h e use o f i d e n t i t y c a r d s or any
form of compulsory i d e n t i f i c a t i o n system i s t h e d e - p e r s o n a l i s i n g
e f f e c t o f such systems. The number o r c a r d r e p l a c e s t h e person:
The danger i s t h a t t h e p e r s o n a l i t y becomes n o t t h e l i v i n g
f l e s h and b l o o d b u t t h e f a c e on t h e card. J u s t as t h e person
needing medical c a r e i s n o t t h e body b u t t h e Medibank number.
O r t h e person w a n t i n g c r e d i t i s t h e Bankcard o r D i n e r s
Card. [2Q]
To be a niimber f o r o f f i c i a l purposes has a dehumanising
e f f e c t . This has been found i n p r i s o n s and t h e Nagle Royal Commission
i n t o P r i s o n s i n NSW i n 1978, recommended t h a t t h e use o f numbers be
abolished, P r i s o n a c t i v i s t B r e t t C o l l i n s r e c e n t l y wrote, 'Because i t s
members have worn numbers and names on t h e i r c h e s t s f o r decades i n
p r i s o n , t h e P r i s o n e r s A c t i o n Group f i n d s t h e p r o p o s i t i o n f o r a
un'l versa1 TU system s h o c k i n g ' .E211
Commenting on t h i s aspect of' t h e ID c a r d system as mentioned
i n t h e Tax White Paper, P e t e r Cole-Adanrs wrote,
If Bob Hawke and Paul K e a t i n g have t h e i r way, A u s t r a l i a n s i n
t h e c l o s i n g y e a r s o f t h e 2 0 t h c e n t u r y w i l l be c o n f i d e n t of
t h e i r e x i s t e n c e o n l y i f t h e y have a l i t t l e p l a s t i c - c o a t e d
c a r d t o prove it.[223
Costs
The a c t u a l c o s t s i n v o l v e d i n e s t a b l i s h i n g and m a i n t a i n i n g a n a t i o n a l
scheme o f i d e n t i f i c a t i o n w i l l o b v i o u s l y vary a c c o r d i n g t o t h e t y p e of
system adopted and t h e purposes f o r which i t i s used.
However t h e r e
a r e some c o s t s which w i l l be common t o any t y p e of system u s i n g an I D
c a r d o r number:
m
establishment costs - esg. p u b l i c i t y ,
computers, r e c r u i t i n g , m a t e r j a l s ; and
27 ~ o ~ e m ~1977.
er
20. ~ a n b e r ~Times,
a
21. e
9 9 May 1985,
8 June 1985, p o l l o
22 *
mailing,
I d e n t i t y Cards
e
13
-
The M a j o r Issues
-
c o s t s of m a i n t a i n i n g and p o l i c i n g t h e system
e.g. s i z e
o f bureaucracy needed t o m a i n t a i n system and t o check
a p p l ic a t ions f o r new c a r d s o r r e n e w a l s ; p u r s u i n g
f o r g e r i e s ; h a n d l i n g i n f o r m a t i o n about card-holders.
A t t h e t i m e of t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f Medicare,
t h e c o s t o f i s s u i n g Medicare cards were:
Set up c o s t s
e
,
-
estimates o f
machinery, postage etc.:
i f sent t o a l l households - $11.2m
i f sent t o a l l i n d i v i d u a l s
$14.5~1
-
Cost o f replacement every two y e a r s :
e
e
t o households - $2,5m,
t o i n d i v i d u a l s - $4.6me
I n i t s 1976 Report t h e ( U S ) Federal A d v i s o r y Committee on
F a l s e I d e n t i f i c a t i o n a l s o l i s t e d as a major o b j e c t i o n t o a n a t i o n a l I D
scheme, t h e expense i n v o l v e d i n v e r i f y i n g and s t o r i n g i n f o r m a t i o n
suppl i e d by c a r d h o l d e r s
As discussed e a r l i e r , t h e Government's proposal f o r t h e
A u s t r a l i a Card l'ncl udes ~ ~ ~ . o f~ t h~e ~c o sat s to f ~ i t s e s t a b l i s h m e n t
and o p e r a t i o n . They are, i n I985 terms, $38m f o r e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f t h e
system and annual o p e r a t i n g c o s t s o f $49m.
A f u r t h e r o b j e c t i o n i s t h e f a c t t h a t such a system would be s u b j e c t t o
d e f e a t by imposters and c o u n t e r f e i t e r s t a k i n g advantage o f c a r e l e s s
i n s p e c t i o n o f documents o r t h r o u g h t h e c o r r u p t i o n o f o f f i c i a l s .
The
f o r g i n g o f i d e n t i t y cards would n o t be d i f f i c u l t and attempts t o make
t h i s more d i f f i c u l t by t h e use o f photographs o r f i n g e r p r i n t s would
c o m p l i c a t e t h e system and arouse s t r o n g o p p o s i l i o n .
I n an attempt t o reduce f o r g e r y attempts, t h e proposed
A u s t r a l i a Card i n c l u d e s a h o l o g r a p h i c diagram o f t h e map o f A u s t r a l i a
and t h e A u s t r a l i a n f l a g .
Since i t s i n t r o d u c t i o n t h e A u s t r a l i a n Medicare c a r d has m a i n t a i n e d a
low p r o f i l e .
It has a t t r a c t e d l i t t l e a t t e n t i o n because t h e o n l y t i m e
i t i s r e a l l y needed is when a d o c t o r b u l k b i l l s a p a t i e n t , o r when
b e i n g t r e a t e d i n some p u b l i c ho p i t a l s .
Furthermore, i t i s n o t
compulsory t o c a r r y t h e card,
There has been l i t t l e o r no p u b l i c i t y
about t h e c a r d b e i n g demanded f o r o t h e r purposes.
However, as a l r c dy d ~ s ~ u s ~t hee dUS~ s o c i a l s e c u r i t y number
i s a n example o f ho e a s i l y an i d e n t i f ~ c a t i o n s y s t e m and i t s
d d a t a and .i
can be used f o r purposes
I d e n t i t y Cards
-
The Major Issues
o t h e r t h a n t h e o r i g i n a l one.
The growing use o f s o c i a l s e c u r i t y
numbers f o r a wide v a r i e t y o f purposes caused concern i n t h e U n i t e d
States, and i n 1974 became t h e s u b j e c t o f a f e d e r a l i n v e s t i g a t i o n .
Although a 1939 l a w guqranteed t h a t i n f o r m a t i o n i n s o c i a l s e c u r i t y
f i l e s would be used o n l y f o r t h a t program, so many e x c e p t i o n s had been
g r a n t e d by Con r e s 5 t h a t i t was s t a t e d i n 1975,
...
the Social Security Administration i s a fount o f
i n f o r m a t i o n f o r F e d e r a l , S t a t e and m u n i c i p a l - g o v e r n m e n t
agencies,
I n a t l e a s t 30 s i t u a t i o n s , personal d a t a f r o m
S o c i a l S e c u r i t y r e c o r d s may be r e l e a s e d t o o t h e r agencies
w i t h o u t t h e consent o f t h e i n d i v i d u a l involved.[23]
I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e o f f i c i a l agencies which had access t o t h e f i l e s ,
t h e f e d e r a l i n q u i r y was i n v e s t i g a t i n g why s o c i a l s e c u r i t y numbers were
o f t e n i n c l u d e d on m a i l i n g l i s t s s o l d c o m m e r c i ~ ~ l y ~
t o reports i n the
and t h e A u s t r a l i a n F i n a n c i a l
t y cards
t h e submission on
u r i t y was l e s s than e
astic. A
t h e c o s t s of such a scheme and i t s p o s s i b l e E
i t s c l i e n t s , t h e Department a c c o r d i n g t o press r e p o r t s o f f e r e d t h e
following opinions:
e
e
,.
I D cards
problems.
would
assist
in
correcting
overpayment
Unless t h e s e c u r i t y o f t h e cards was v i r t u a l l y absolute,
t h e e x i s t e n c e o f t h e ID cards m i g h t exacerbate t h e
degree o f f r a u d .
While t h e cards m i g h t d e t e r t h e
a m ~ t ~ ui tr ~m i g h t have no e f f e c t on t h e p r o f e s s i o n a l
defrauder.
'They argue t h a t once a c a r d i s f o r g e d t h e
whole system i s unlocked, ' E
The e x i s t e n c e o f I D cards w i l l n o t ass-ist t h e Department
of S o c i a l S e c u r i t y i n i t s major problem o f people
s u p p l y i n g f a l s e i n f o r ~ ~ a t i o about
n
t h e i r income l e v e l s
and domestic c ~ r c ~ m ~ t ~ n c E ~ ~
I t i s up t o each i n d i v i d u a ~ t o d e c i d e whether he o r she agrees or
d i s a g r e e s o r even cares w ~ e t ~ eAru s t r a l i a n s should be i s s u e d w i t h
i d e n t i t y cards. T h i s paper has sought t o r a i s e t h e i s s u e s on which
23
24.
mber 1975, p.50.
~ i n ~ n R~ e iv ~a e ~w27
~ and 28 June
(.
25. A ~ s t r a l i a nF i n
p
I
I
_
_
_
Identity Cards
-
The Najor Issues
this decision m i g h t be based. Probably the practical objections are
not as important as the philosophical arguments. The decisions made
on c e r t a i n i s s u e s a n d t h e assurances o f f e r e d by a Government
responsible for the proposal t o introduce an ID cards scheme w i l l
probably sway public o p i n i o n for or a g a i n s t the idea. Those issues
i ncl ude :
e
whether or not i t will be compulsory t o carry the card
a t a l l times;
what information the card will contain, e . g e will i t
carry only a number or many personal d e t a i l s , w i t h or
w i t h o u t a photograph;
e
whether the card w i l l be for a specific purpose or
whether i t s use may be changed by the Government o f the
day;
whether Austral?an citizens can be assured t h a t the
information t h a t they are compelled t o supply will
remain confidential and w i l l not be passed between
g ~ v e r n ~ eagencies
n~
and even commercial organisations;
.
what rights Australians w i l l have t o see t h e i r f i l e s t o
ensure t h a t a l l ~ n f o r m a ~ ~ iosn accurate, and whether
there w i l l be avenues o f appeal a g a i n s t incorrect,
u n f a i Y' or inaccurate entries ;
f i n a l l y ( a n d impossible t o answer), how will Australian
c i t i z e n s k n o w whether or n o t they can t r u s t t h e
Government of the day and the bureaucracy not t o abuse
the power which i s presented t o them by centralised,
computerised information on every citizen i n Australia.
Identity cards or nurnbers as such are neither good nor bad.
I t i s i n t h e i r potential for abuse t h a t the danger l i e s . If they are
adopted i n any form i t would seem t o be necessary f o r the controlling
authority t o ensure t h a t t h e i r use i s not extended t o unrelated
purposes, t h a t access t o the collected d a t a i s not exploited and t h a t
the privacy o f i n d i v i d u a l Australians i s completely safeguardede
So the question of accepting or rejecting ID cards i s a
question o f balance. There are those people who completely reject the
idea because they see them as a threat t o the rights and l i b e r t i e s of
individual Australians. To such people assurances from governments
t h a t there will be no ab[
wer, intentional or unintentional
are not good enough: ide
s are merely Big Brother's foot i n
the door.
are those people who feel so
security f r a u d or
as a method o f
hey do n o t see the danger^ t o be as great
On the other s i d e
strongly about a p a ~ t i c ~ issue,
l~r
t a x evas-ion, t h a t they advocate
1ems.
.. 16
Identity Cards
-
The Major Issues
as feared by opponents of the idea. As has been asked, which i s a
greater abuse, an identity card or h a v i n g t o pay more t h a n your f a i r
share of t a x ? David Simmons M.P. commented on t h i s s i t u a t i o n ,
You have t o balance o u t w i t h c o n s i d e r a t i o n s of c i v i l
liberties.
There have obviously got t o be questions o f
cost-benefit, balancing the efficiency of the bureaucracy
w i t h the privacy of the individual.[26]
Perhaps t h e answer i s somewhere i n between t h e s e two
positions.
A f i n a l word of warning i s contained i n a 1927 comment
from Mr Justice Brandeis of the US Supreme Court,
Experience shou'ld teach us t o be most on our guard when the
Men born t o freedom
Government's purposes are benef ici ent
are naturally a l e r t t o repel invasion o f t h e i r l i b e r t y by
evil-minded rulers. The greatest dangers t o l i b e r t y lurk in
insidious encroachment by men of zeal, we1 1 -meani ng , b u t
without understanding.[27]
e
July 1985
I_F__I
26 e
27 *
6 June 1985.
1985,
SOC IAb W
17
-
~ REC I~P I E TS
F
I N SELECTED
~
~ COUNTRIES
~
Canada.
The SINCARD system, i n t r o d u c e d rnore t h a n t e n y e a r s ago, was
o r i g i n a l l y i n t e n d e d f o r s o c i a l s e c u r i t y purposes b u t has expanded i n
use, d e s p i t e widespread p r o t e s t s .
By c o m p u t e r i s a t i o n i t l i n k s i n t o
income t a x as w e l l as s o c i a l s e c u r i t y .
The i n d i v i d u a l has a SINCARD
g i v i n g name and number b u t t h e r e -is no p r o v i s i o n f o r s i g n a t u r e , photo
or finger print.
The number i s e s s e n t i a l for employment.
However,
i t s main advantage i s convenience; as a means o f i d e n t i f i c a t i o n i t has
l i t t l e advantage o v e r a d r i v i n g l i c e n c e , f o r example.
P
Denmark.
Each i n d i v i d u a l has a p o s t a l r e g i s t r a t i o n card, w i t h a
number based on b i r t h d a t e and y e a r : t h i s i s used f o r s o c i a l s e c u r i t y
r e g i s t r a t i o n and i d e n t i f i c a t i o n . S o c i a l S e c u r i t y i s a d m i n i s t e r e d by a
s i n g l e c e n t r a l i s e d , computerised system which i s t h e main c o n t r o l
mechanismn
Each ind’Pvidual has an I D c a r d w i t h
as i n a p a s s p o r t (address, d a t e o f b i r t h ,
s i g n a t u r e , h e i g h t , eye c o l o u r ) and a number based on name and b i r t h
d a t e e C o n t r o l o f i l l e g a l payments i s e f f e c t e d by t h e requirement f o r
i n d i v i d u a l s t o r e g i s t e r a n n u a l l y and t o update f a m i l y circumstances.
Payments a r e made through a bank account o r p e r s o n a l l y on p r o d u c t i o n
of i d e n t i f i c a t i o n .
Netherlands.
There -is no n a t i o n a l I D system,
Abuse o f t h e s o c i a l
s e c u r i t y system i s made d - i f f i c u l t by t h e f a c t t h a t each a d u l t i s
s u b j e c t t o r e g i s t r a t i o n o f address w i t h t h e l o c a l a u t h o r i t y .
The
s o c i a l s e c u r i t y system i s ~ o m p ~ ~ t e r i s eand
d c e n t r a l i s e d , and a l l
b e n e f i t s a r e p a i d by t h e G I R O system ( t h e p o s t a l b a n k i n g system) f o r
which t h e r e i s no charge and which a l l b e n e f i c i a r i e s a r e r e q u i r e d t o
Use,
_l_l_l*
New Zealand.
The s i t u a t i o n i n New Zealand i s s i m i l a r t o A u s t r a l i a .
There i s no n a t j o n a l I D system, n o r i s t h e r e a s p e c i f i c s o c i a l
s e c u r i t y card.
The main means o f c o n t r o l a r e t h r o u g h t h e e f f i c i e n c y
of t h e p r e l i m i n a r y r e g i s t r a t i o n s y s t q n and t h e r e q u i r e m e n t t o
r e - r e g i s t e r o r r e p o r t p e r i o d i c a l lye There i s a’l so a b e n e f i t s c o n t r o l
d i v i s i o n , as i n o t h e r c o u n t r i e s , which ~ n v e s t ~ g a t essu s p i c i o u s cases
o r a ~ l e g ~ t ~ made
o ~ i sby members o f t h e p u b l i c .
--=-
Sweden.
Each i n d i v i d u a l has an i d e n t i t y c a r d and t h e number i s used
ks and f o r t a x a t i o n and s o c i a l s e c u r i t y purposese There i s an
e l a b o r a t e D a t a Act t o l i m i t and p r e v e n t abuse o f t h e I D c a r d and
r e 1 a t e d i n f o r m a t i o n systems.
e
The s o c i a l s e c u r i t y system i n B r i t a i n i s funded
t h r o u g h in d i v i d u a l s ( a s we9 1 a s e m p l o y e r s ’ and govern men^)
c o n t r i b u ~ i o n s ~ An e s s e n t i a l document f o r employment i s t h e s o c i a l
s e c u r i t y c a r d which keeps account o f c o n t r i b u t i o n s and i s used f o r
s o c i a l s e c u r i t y b e n e f i t s as w e l l .
The o n l y ~ d e r i t i f i c a t i ~ ins t h e
name, number and s ~ g n a t u r e ~
U n i t e d ~ t a . ~ e As l ~l e
and some o t h e r
whi c h c a r r i e s
i d e n t i f i c a t i on,
rmal e m ~ ~ o y m e n( to t h e r t h a n f e d e r a l
ment) have a s c i a 1 s ~ c ~ cra r~d ~ y
mber b u t no s g n a t u r e o r o t h e r
w e l l as s o c i a l s e c u r i t y .
ARGUMENTS RELATED TO TAX EVASION
Commerce Group
I f i d e n t i t y cards were i n t r o d u c e d and laws enacted t o r e q u i r e people
t o produce t h e cards f o r t a x a t i o n purposes, t a x evasion i n two areas
i n p a r t i c u l a r would be c u r t a i l e d i f n o t e l i m i n a t e d .
These areas a r e
discussed b e l ow.
(a)
C u r t a i l m e n t o f evas
By way of background, t h e general PAYE t a x i n s t a l m e n t s c a l e takes i n t o
account t h e zero r a t e o f t a x t h a t a p p l i e s on t h e f i r s t $4595 o f a
p e r s o n ' s income ( t i t l e d t h e 'General Exemption' f o r PAYE purposes).
The t a x i n s t a l m e n t s d e d u c t i b l e i n accordance w i t h t h e general s c a l e
a p p l y t o t h e g r e a t m a j o r i t y o f employees who do n o t c l a i m concessional
r e b a t e s (e.g. t h e dependent spouse r e b a t e ) and t h e i n s t a l m e n t s i n t h a t
s c a l e a r e reduced f o r people c l a i m i n g concessional r e b a t e s f o r PAYE
purposes by t h e weekly v a l u e o f t h e r e b a t e ( s ) claimed.
Another s c a l e , which s e t s o u t t h e PAYE i n s t a l m e n t s t o be
deducted where an employee has a second j o b , makes no allowance f o r
t h e z e r o r a t e s t e p n o r i s t h e s c a l e reduced by t h e v a l u e o f any
concessional rebate.
Furthermore, t h e s c a l e ( d e s c r i b e d as t h e ' n o
d e c l a r a t i o n s c a l e ' i n these n o t e s ) assumes t h e employee earns a
I t i s necessary t o
c e r t a i n amount o f income i n h i s o r her main j o b .
make t h i s assumption i n o r d e r t h a t t h e h i g h e r marginal r a t e s o f t a x
t h a t a p p l y a t t h e h i g h e r l e v e l s o f income a r e r e f l e c t e d i n t h e PAYE
d e d u c t i o n s made from earnings i n second jobs.
To have t h e general s c a l e a p p l i e d i n d e t e r m i n i n g t h e PAYE
d e d u c t i o n from h i s / h e r pay an employee has t o l o d g e w i t h h i s l h e r
employer a completed Income l a x I n s t a l m e n t D e c l a r a t i o n form c l a i m i n g
t h e general exemption. Any concessi onal r e b a t e s t o which t h e employee
i s e n t i t l e d may a l s o be claimed i n t h a t d e c l a r a t i o n .
Legally
employees may have o n l y one d e c l a r a t i o n i n f o r c e a t any time.
A c c o r d i n g l y , an employee w i t h two j o b s who complies w i t h t h e law and
f u r n i s h e s a d e c l a r a t i o n t o o n l y one o f h i s l h e r employers would have
t h e general s c a l e ( o r t h a t s c a l e l e s s t h e value o f any concessional
rebates claimed) a p p l i e d by t h e employer t o whom t h e d e c l a r a t i o n was
furnished, and t h e no d e c l a r a t i o n s c a l e a p p l i e d by t h e o t h e r eniployer.
A l a r g e number o f employees a r e overcoming t h e r u l e t h a t an
employee may have o n l y t h e one Income Tax I n s t a l m e n t D e c l a r a t i o n i n
perhaps i n some cases w i t h t h e c o l l u s i o n o f t h e i r
f o r c e a t any t i m e
employers
by w o r k i n g under a f a l s e name i n one o r more o f t h e i r
jobs.
Some o f these employees a l s o i n s e r t f a l s e dependants i n t h e i r
f a l s e d e c l a r a t i o n s t o e n s u r e t h a t no P A Y E d e d u c t i o n s , o r o n l y
n e g l i g i b l e amounts o f deductions, a r e made f r o m t h e i r earnings.
Of
course, t h e second Job e a r n i n g s o f t h e s e people a r e n o t shown i n
t a x a t i o n re turns^
-
-
Other categories of emp~oyees who use false names and who
claim false dependants for PAVE purposes are seasonal workers and
employees in other casual employment, Some of these employees lodge
false declarations with all of their employers.
If people who are evading tax in the way described above have
to identify themselves correctly and have the appropriate amount o f
tax deducted each week this avenue of tax evasion would be closed off.
(b) Curtailment of evasion of tax on dividend and interest income
I__
There is evidence that a very substantial amount of the interest that
is paid to people, and to a lesser extent dividends, is not being
included as income in taxation returns. Some of the income
distributed by unit trusts would also, no doubt, not be declared for
taxation purposes.
The Taxation Office has a program for checking that interest
paid to people is shown by the recipients as income in taxation
returns. For the purpose of these checks certain of the financial
institutions report to the ~ a x a ~ iOffice
~ n the interest (or interest
over a certain moderate amount) that they have paid to each account
holder, A l s o , dividend pa,yments are checked by the Taxation Office
from company records
e
Reports ind-icate that the program i s having only ,a limited
effect$ mainly because i t i s difficult for the Taxation Office to
match “information supplied by the institutions with information
extracted from taxation returns, This is because there are often
s oexample)
~
and a large
several people with the same name ~ f ~ t h e ~ /for
number of people change their address each year,
Apart from the difficulty o f checking that amounts paid to
people who have accounts in their correct names are declared as
income, there is also the problem that some people may be evading tax
by opening accounts in false names early in a financial year and
closing the accounts in the next financial year before the Taxation
Office can make its checks. The process can then be repeated with
another financial institution. It was recently reported in the press
that an elderly person had been advised by a financial adviser to open
an account with the a d v l s e r 8 s company in a false name to avoid the
assets test affecting the person’s pension. Is i t possible then that
suggestions to this effect ar eing made to people concerning evading
tax on such payments as inter
Identity cards would overcome the problem o f people avoiding
tax on interest and dividends and unit trust declarations by opening
accounts in false names. Furthermore, the cards would change the
Taxation Office’s task of checking that the payments in question have
been declared as income, from a time-consuming and not great1
effective task to a re~atively simp’le and very effective one. Miti
identity cards in ope ratio^ the banks, building societies, credit
unions, trusts and businesses payin interest to other than banks,
building societies and credit unions
are referred to as
financial institutions in
interest, dividends
i
It may be t h o u g h t t h a t t h e evasion o f t a x by way o f i n t e r e s t
arid d i v i d e n d payments n o t b e i n shown i n t a x a t i o n r e t u r n s c o u l d be
simply overcome by w i t h h o l d i n g t a x from such payments a t source.
Under such a system t h e f i n a n c i a l i n s t i t u t i o n s would w i t h h o l d t a x from
i n t e r e s t , d i v i d e n d s and u n i t t r u s t payments a t t h e t i m e o f payment, o r
c r e d i t i n g o f payments i n q u e s t i o n i n t h e same way as employers
w i t h h o l d t a x from t h e pay o f employees under t h e PAY& system.
The problem w i t h such a system would be t h a t t h e f i n a n c i a l
i n s t i t u t i o n would have no means of knowing a t what r a t e t a x would be
pa a b l e by a person on h i s / h e r payments.
That r a t e would depend on
n o t o n l y t h e payment concerned b u t on t h e p e r s o n ‘ s n e t income f r o m
o t h e r sources, and i n some cases t h e p e r s o n ’ s e n t i t l e m e n t t o t a x
r e b a t e s , A c c o r d i n g l y , u n l e s s avenues a r e t o be l e f t open f o r those on
t h e h i g h e r incomes t o evade t a x by n o t i n c l u d i n g t h e i r d i v i d e n d s and
i n t e r e s t payments i n t a x a t i o n r e t u r n s , t a x would have t o be w i t h h e l d
frorn t h e payments i n q u e s t i o n a t t h e maximum r a t e o f t a x .
I t may be s a i d t h a t t h e o v e r w i t h h o l d i n g o f t a x from i n t e r e s t ,
d i v i d e n d s and un.it t r u s t payment^ would n o t be a serl’ous problem, as
t h e amount w i t h h e l d would be a l l o w e d as a c r e d i t a g a i n s t t h e p e r s o n ’ s
t o t a l t a x l i a b i l i t y a t t h e assessment stage f o l l o w i n g lodgment o f
income t a x r e t u r n s .
Any excess over t h a t necessary t o
the
assessed t a x would t h e n be refunded t o t h e taxpayer, o r deduc ed from
t h e t a x payable on income from o t h e r sources.
Despite t h i s , a l a r g e
number o f people would, no doubt, t h i n k t h a t because t a x was b e i n g
w i t h h e l d a t t h e maximum r a t e o f t a x t h e Government was t a k i n g h a l f o r
more o f t h e i r i n t e r e s t r e c e i p t s i n t a x .
Fay
A w i t h h o l d i n g system would be p a r t i c u l a r l y i n c o n v e n i e n t ( o r
eous) f o r t h o s e p e n s i o ~ e r s who supplement t h e i r pension
from i n t e r e s t d i v i d e n s o r u n i t t r u s t s , and who, because
t h e i r t o t a l income -is l e s s t h a n t h t a x t h r e s h o l d , a r e n o t r e q u i r e d t o
With a w i t h h o ~ d ~ nsystem
g
o p e r a t i n g t h e s e pensioners would
pay t a x .
e i t h e r have ,to l o d g e t a x a t i o n r e t u r n s ( i n t h e meantime g o i n g w i t h o u t
t h e income t h a t was w i t h h e l d f o r t a x ) o r a p p l y t o have t h e i r i n t e r e s t
exempt f r o m w i t h h o l d i n g . I n t h e l a t t e r case t h e y would, i n e f f e c t , be
.to t h e f i n a n c i a l i n s t i t u t i o n s t h a t t h e i r t o t a l income each
slow t h e t a x t h r e s h o l d .
The pensioners and b e n e f i c i a r i e s whose income i s o f
t h a t r e q u i r e s them t o pay o n l y small amounts o f t a x would
d i s a d v a n ~ a ~ eby
d having t o w a i t , f o r up t o a year, f o r t h a t
t h e w i t h ~ o ~ d id~e dg u c t i o n t h a t was i n excess o f t h e t a x
payable on t h e i r i n t e r e s t payments.
a level
a l s o be
p a r t of
actually
A f u r t h e r p o i n t a g a i n s t a w i t h h o l d i n g system f o r i n t e r e s t and
d i v i d e n d payments i s t h a t u n l e s s some method c o u l d be found t o enable
t h e T a x a t i o n Qfftce t o r e a d i l y i d e n t i f y people who had been p a i d
i n t e r e s t and who were e n t i t l e d t o c r e d i t f o r t a x w i t h h e l d , t h e
f i n a n c i a l i n s t i t u t i o n s would have t o i s s u e c e r t i f i c a t e s t o a l l t h e i r
h o l d e r s showing t h e i n t e r e s t
and t a x w i t h h e l d .
There
an e n o r ~ ~ o unumber
s
r e q u i r e d and t h e e x e r c i s e
of certif
costly f o r the financial i n s t ~ t u t i o n s .
-
21
-
(e) Curtailment of some other avenues of tax evasion
There are, no doubt, a number of other areas where the
identification of people would result in the closing off
evasion avenues. For example, correct identification for
exchange transaction purposes may be helpful in overcoming tax
on off-shore transactions.
correct
of tax
foreign
evasion
(d) Gain to taxation revenue
According to the White Paper on the reform of the taxation system the
gain to taxation revenue that would follow from the introduction of
identity cards is put at $800m annually within three years of
implementation.
Leaving aside the civil liberties argument, the cost of issuing the
cards and the fact that the great majority of taxpayers already
correctly identify themselves for both PAVE and other taxation
purposes, there would be few points against the issue of cards from a
taxation point of view.
A number o f taxpayers, especially those whose avenues for
evading tax were closed off, would criticise the cards as a further
discriminatory move against PAYE taxpayers or the 1 ittle people'.
They would point out that these people are already disadvantaged, as
compared with taxpayers with a business or a profession, in that they
are not able to split their incomes with family members for taxation
purposes. However, the great majority o f employees should welcome the
introduction of the cards if they can be convinced that the revenue
that will be gained, as a result of people being required to correctly
identify themselves, will permit a reduction in the tax payable by
them,
Other C u r r e n t Issues B r i e f s
r e c e n t l y pub1 ished by t h e L e g i sl a t i ve Research S e r v i c e
1984
'Brunei
-
NO. 1
Leigh, M.,
Independence f o r Whom?'
NO. 2
Larmour, C.,
' A f f i r m a t i v e Action:
The US Experience and
A u s t r a l i a n Proposals t o Combat Sex D i s c r i m i n a t i o n ' .
No. 3
Newman, G. and Klason, A.,
(Prel iminary Results) I .
NO. 4
Baxter, E.,
No. 5
P a n t e r , R.,
' A Chronology o f I n V i t r o
A u s t r a l i a , January 1983 t o August 1984'.
No. 6
C a s t l e , M.,
' A Summary o f L e g i s l a t i o n R e l e v a n t t o t h e
Impending E l e c t i o n ' e
'New South Wales E l e c t i o n s , 1984
' S u r r o g a t e Mothers
-
The! Legal I s s u e s ' .
Fertilisation:
1985
___.
No. 1
Brown, G.,
' A S h o r t Guide t o Nuclear Weapons and Warfare
Termi no1 ogy' e
No. 2
Beyer, M.,
'The World Sugar Market and Prospects f o r a New
I n t e r n a t i o n a l Sugar Agreement'.
NO. 3
M a r k e r , A.,
Introduction'.
No. 4
Makinda, Ss, 'The Coup i n Sudan:
Imp1 i c a t i o n s ' e
No. 5
Angley, J . ,
No. 6
Fraser,
far' e
D.,
'Industrial
Robots
in
Australia:
An
I n t e r n a l and I n t e r n a t i o n a l
'The New South Wales D o c t o r s ' D i s p u t e ' .
' T e l e v i s i o n and t h e S a t e l l i t e :
t h e s t o r y so
Ifyou wish t o r e c e i v e copies of any of t h e above p u b l i c a t i o n s please
c o n t a c t t h e Pub1 i c a t i o n s O f f i c e r , Department o f t h e Par1 iamentary
L i b r a r y , K u r r a j o n g Annex, B a r t o n ACT 2600, o r phone 72 7551.