Do you feel the presence of Big Brother every lunchtime?
The Protection of Freedoms Bill was introduced to the House of Commons on 11th February 2011, and is expected to become law within the next year.
The Bill stipulates that children in schools cannot be fingerprinted without written consent from parents/carers, and that any consent given may be withdrawn at any time.
Schools using biometric systems for taking fingerprints in the canteen will therefore have to offer an opt out, commonly in the form of pin numbers or swipe cards. Many schools currently offer no opt out - so no fingerprints, no lunch.
Many of our members consider giving fingerprints as an infringement of their civil liberties, and are hence unable to use their school canteen.
The Protection of Freedoms Bill will ensure that all our members will finally be able to use any school canteen without having to give their fingerprints.
The full text of Chapter 2 The Protection of Freedoms Bill is available here.