UK government secures majority in Commons ID card vote

Despite suffering defeat in the House of Lords back in January, the UK government has secured a majority in a House of Commons vote for the introduction of biometric identity cards.

MPs voted 310 to 279 in favor of the proposal that anyone applying for or renewing a passport as of 2008 will be required to apply for an ID card and see their biometric details added to a national identity register.

The controversial identity cards, which are expected to carry fingerprint data, iris and facial biometric technology, were hotly contested in the Commons, as Labour rebels joined government critics in their accusations of 'creeping compulsion'.

Pacifying its opponents somewhat, the government agreed that new legislation would have to be introduced in order to make the cards compulsory.