This would merely show that the card is not forged. It would not detect someone using a stolen card as their own - and there would be plenty of lost and stolen ID cards about. Even though most people guard their passports carefully, in 2004 over 300,000 UK passports were lost or stolen [1]. Ministers say they want their Identity Scheme to become the "Gold Standard" for personal identity [2], and that people should use ID cards to prove "who you are, day in, day out",[3] offering many more opportunities to lose them than occasionally-used passports.

[1] Des Browne, Home Office questions, 21 February 2005, http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2005-02-21.204447.h [2] Des Browne, Home Office questions, 20 December 2004, http://www.theyworkforyou.com/debate/?id=2004-12-20a.1900.0

[3] Andy Burnham, Radio 4 Today Programme, 28 March 2006, http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/today/listenagain/ram/today1_0630_20060328.ram