Answering David Cameron's calls for a rethink, Gordon Brown has said the public can be confident in the security of the National Identity Register

The Conservative Party leader has warned of the dangers to data security posed by the national ID cards scheme.

David Cameron, leader of the Conservative Party, called on the prime minister, Gordon Brown, to rethink his plans for the National Identity Register, following the "appalling blunder" which led to the huge loss of child-benefit data from HM Revenue & Customs.

Cameron said that the public "will find it truly bizarre — they will find it weird — that the prime minister does not stop and think about the dangers of a National Identity Register".

Responding to Cameron at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, Brown said that the biometric data incorporated into ID cards will help people to "feel confident that their identity is protected". He reminded the leader of the opposition that his party's security adviser had proposed ID cards.

Brown also defended the government's position on data protection by highlighting the inquiries that have been set up following the HMRC disaster.

The civil service Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) has welcomed the review, but raised concerns about the impact of the government's continuing commitment to cut a further 12,500 jobs in HMRC by 2011, in addition to the 13,000 already shed since March 2005.

The union also criticised the use of a private courier service, rather than civil servants, to handle sometimes confidential intra-departmental communications.

The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) has sought to provide reassurance about the ID cards policy. It said that the National Identity Register will have comprehensive audit and alert systems, along with a range of technical controls which will allow any activity on the system to be checked and an alert raised if any unauthorised access is attempted.

There will also be multiple access controls and limits to the number of people who can see the whole of an individual's identity profile or make changes to it.

On biometrics, the IPS said: "Biometrics, such as fingerprints, will link a person securely and reliably to his or her unique identity. It will, therefore, become much more difficult to misuse another person's identity."

Copyright © 1995-2008 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved
ZDNET is a registered service mark of CNET Networks, Inc. ZDNET Logo is a service mark of CNET Networks, Inc.