SANDRA JOINS LOCAL STUDENTS IN FIGHT AGAINST ID CARDS

12.00.00am GMT Tue 18th Mar 2008

As the government singles out students to be the first group to receive national ID cards, Southampton and Hampshire MP Sandra Gidley has joined with local students from Southampton University to fight their introduction.

At a recent meeting, Sandra outlined the case against ID cards, and pledged to do all she can to stop their introduction in Hampshire.

Sandra said:

"As a liberal the defence of civil liberties is in my DNA, and the proposed introduction of ID cards is the latest blow in a decade-long assault on British justice and humanity.

"Curtailing the right to jury trial, fingerprinting children in schools, child curfew zones, the biggest DNA database in the world, and now, identity cards. Nowhere else in the western world are civil liberties being swept away so carelessly.

"The government is looking to snare students and young people in their trap first as they view them as soft targets. They are acting like bullies in the playground."

Sandra and the students will be starting a petition against ID cards and hope to get the local public behind their campaign. Louisa Hall, who is one of the Students leading the campaign at Southampton University added:

"We're being held to ransom with this, if you refuse to have ID cards then you may not be able to have passports or benefits.

"The government say it will make us feel secure - how exactly? It's just another database for things to go wrong - we've already seen those data problems."

Sandra and the campaigners will be taking their petition to the Prime Minister in the coming months.

Sandra and Southampton University students starting their campaign to end the introduction of ID cards

ENDS