By Mark Ballard for The
Register.
This story has been reproduced with permission.
In an argument for "common sense" criticism of complex
government IT projects, the IPS claimed that its cost estimates
were likely to change with time. But the department has failed to
respond to the other significant criticism of the IPS report - that
there was a lack of information and lack of transparency that was
an affront to democratic control of such a large and controversial
project.
"With any cost estimates covering a ten year forward period
there are uncertainties," said the IPS in a statement.
"The estimates in the report are therefore subject to change in
the light of new information or assumptions and there is a
significant probability that the estimates will change in the light
of further experience. That is just common sense, and we committed
to keeping Parliament updated".
It did not answer specific criticisms levelled by the LSE about
the lack of information published about the scheme, such as the
lack of information to explain the costings the IPS had produced,
and the changes that had occurred in the last 12 months.
However, the IPS said: "It is simply not true though to claim
that the Scheme is 'out of control': we are introducing the scheme
incrementally, building on existing programmes to introduce more
secure passports and immigration documents."
The scheme would be self-financing, it said, while it was
becoming more essential for the state, businesses and individuals
to prove people's identities more surely. Anyway, it said, the
LSE's past analysis had contained weak assumptions.
© The Register
2007
