§ Mr. Laurence RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the use of smart card technology in his Department and in the areas for which it is responsible; and what discussions he has had with private companies about the use of smart card technology within his Department. [50481]
§ Mr. McCartney[holding answer 16 April 2002]: Smart card technology is currently being used within the Department for Work and Pensions for security and access control as part of a project to modernise the Department's IT infrastructure. The project is currently part way through implementation, and all offices should be on stream by the end of 2002. Competitive tenders were sought for the supply of the Smart Card technology. Schlumberger, GemPlus and Giesecke and Devrient submitted proposals and the contract was awarded to GemPlus.
The Department continues to monitor developments in Smart Card technology and will consider it as appropriate for business needs in the future.