Notwithstanding HMRC's recent loss of 25 million records and numerous other debacles in various branches of the British state, every British child will be given a new "unique learner number" and have personal records stored on a single, national, centralised database according to a new Government plan. The individual record will grow and allow the Government to store and use data from 14 until death (and beyond). It will be known as Managing Information Across Partners (MIAP).
The move is connected to the new Education and Skills Bill that will impose a legal obligation on 16-18 year olds to attend at least one day per week of "formal training" and will therefore require a whole new bureaucratic structure in order to monitor and supposedly enforce the compulsory element.
Michael Gove said: "The government has a terrible track record in managing complex IT programmes. Recent events have shown that sensitive personal data is not safe in ministers’ hands. There must be profound worries not just in terms of civil liberties, but also in terms of the security of young people with a project like this."
Why is this going ahead before the end of the security review into ContactPoint, a separate database containing 11 million children's records?
How will the CBI and BCC react? Both support the principle of more children in education and training but worry about the bureuacratic structures the Government will have to create to make a show of enforcing compulsion. It looks likely that their members will be drawn into dealing with this new IT project and it is unlikely they will do so with enthusiasm.
Times
MG Team
