§ Mr. OatenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the(a) cost to date and (b) projected cost is of developing biometric technology for inclusion in passports, broken down by financial 1406W
year; and whether any portion of the expenditure is included in the identity card set-up costs cited in his statement of 11 November 2003, Official Report, column 178. [163325]
Asylum applications1 received in the United Kingdom, excluding dependants, and initial decisions2 on applications, 1999–2003: Nationals of Iraq Principal applicants Applications3 Total Port In country Total initial decisions 1999 1,800 1,385 415 745 20004 7,475 1,920 5,555 5,530 20015 6,680 2,315 4,365 9,035 20026 14,570 1,525 13,045 11,905 20036 4,045 415 3,635 6,755
§ Mr. BrowneThe cost incurred by the UK Passport Service to develop a facial biometric chip enabled passport is shown in the table.
Year (£) 2003–04 850 2004–05 4,645 2005–06 625 The work being carried out to develop biometric technology for inclusion in passports is necessary to 1407W meet current International Civil Aviation Organisation (IACO) recommended standards for passports and therefore no portion of this expenditure is included in the identity card set-up costs.