§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what methods counter-signatories will be required to use(a) to obtain fingerprints from applicants and (b) to authenticate documents provided by applicants as set out in his consultation on new draft regulations for the Criminal Records Bureau. [156059]
§ Ms BlearsThe draft regulations, issued for consultation on 1 December 2003, would require Registered Bodies, or their agents, to authenticate the identity of a Disclosure applicant by examining a combination of official or other documents (for example passports, driving licences and utility bills) which will help confirm the applicant's name, date of birth and current address. Counter signatories, or those carrying out identity checking on their behalf, should he alert for signs of tampering. The Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) has issued guidelines which identify suspicious signs to be on the lookout for when examining the documents commonly presented by applicants.
The draft regulations would not require counter signatories to obtain fingerprints from applicants. We have separately consulted on the Independent Review Team's proposal that applicants for the most sensitive positions should be required to submit their fingerprints with their Disclosure application. We are currently analysing over 2,000 responses to this consultation.
§ Mr. Austin MitchellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the Criminal Records Bureau(a) check and (b) authenticate with the issuing bodies identity documents submitted with applications. [156060]
§ Ms BlearsSince the inception of the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) Registered Bodies have checked the identity of applicants for Disclosures. Being closer to direct contact with applicants than the CRB they are best placed to do so. We have proposed, in the consultation paper we issued in December, that Registered Bodies be made explicitly responsible for validating the identity of those for whom they seek Disclosures. The CRB has issued guidance to Registered Bodies to help them identify common official documents that may have been forged or tampered with.
The CRB continues to check that Registered Bodies, or their agents, have undertaken the necessary checks to verify the identity of applicants. Where evidence of such 1030W checks is not recorded on the Disclosure application form they are rejected by the Bureau. In addition, as part of the proposed periodic audit of Registered Bodies, CRB staff will he checking to see that Registered Bodies properly discharge their responsibilities in this area. Furthermore, as part of their anti-fraud measures the CRB checks a sample of applications against lists maintained by the UK Passport Services and DVLA of fraudulently obtained passports and driving licences.