Join up the dots, for God’s sake!
According to a recent YouGov poll (hat tip: Ideal Government), 75% of people think that lots of CCTV is a good idea; 50% would like to see a universal police DNA database; 55% would like centralised NHS records and 45% of people support mandatory ID cards… yet only 35% of those polled thought that it was a good idea for the government to collect more personal data.
As far as I’m concerned, this is clear evidence that people simply do not understand the implications of these schemes. It would be interesting to see two versions of this poll conducted: one where they ask the personal data question first, and another where they ask it last. I would bet good money that the first poll would show much less support for these schemes than the second — a small reminder can work wonders.
Perhaps a few more HMRC-esque data catastophies will place more firmly in people’s minds the risks attached to the aggregation of massive quantities of private data…
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July 4th, 2008 at 10:09
Yet further proof, as if any were needed, that there are tens of thousands of people out there who don’t deserve the vote.
If you want to drive a car, fly a plane, give legal, medical or financial advice, you have to pass exams and qualify for a license. In the case of the last three, you need to attend compulsory ‘top up’ courses once or twice a year.
I’m beginning to think we should do the same with voting rights. I wonder how the tabloids would respond to the news, knowing full well most of their readers are too ignorant to qualify.