UK to demand biometric data from foreign visitors

LONDON, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Britain said it plans to force non-European foreign nationals to register identity details such as fingerprints and iris scans from 2008.

Foreign nationals will have to apply for cards storing biometric identity data when applying for visas to stay in Britain.

Prime Minister Tony Blair's government announced the stringent measures yesterday as it published details of its controversial plans for national identity cards for British nationals and foreigners.

The government says the identity scheme, which it estimates will cost 5.4 billion pounds over the next decade, will help fight terrorism, serious organised crime and illegal immigration.

Critics, including both main opposition parties, say the scheme is likely to run over budget, infringe civil liberties and will fail to improve national security.

In an apparent concession to civil liberties campaigners, the government said that biometric details, biographical details and access codes will all be stored in separate national databases.

Opponents had warned against the dangers of holding such sensitive information in the same place.

The new rules will apply to all foreign nationals from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) from 2008.

The EEA comprises the 25 countries of the European Union plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.

British citizens will begin to receive identity cards from 2009, which they have not had to carry since a scheme introduced in 1939 at the outbreak of World War Two was abandoned in 1952.

Conservative Shadow home secretary David Davis said identity cards could make Britain less safe.

''What we now have is a designer database targeted solely at those who obey the law. Illegal immigrants will not turn up to apply for visas and submit their biometrics,'' he said.

REUTERS PB ND0904