§ Mr. Laurence RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the use of smart card technology in her Department and in the areas for which it is responsible; and what discussions she has had with private companies about the use of smart card technology within her Department. [50471]
§ Alun MichaelDEFRA's e-business strategy does not currently propose the use of smart cards but as smart card technology matures and becomes more pervasive, DEFRA will consider its use as an authentication mechanism for876W e-business systems, while the Department has not had discussions with private companies about the use of smart cards, DEFRA receives information from the Office of the e-Envoy on this topic and has participated in the OeE's Smart Card Working Party which produced the Smart Card Framework document.