Speaking to Nobody

It is wonderful to have the right to speak out, but it is a shame people then have the right not to reply.

I was outraged after not being able to by a pint at a meal, and this prompted me to right an open letter to our local newspaper.

It was published, and I promptly recieved no response. It has now been over two months (nearly 3) since the letters publication, so I presume I will be getting none.

Below is a copy of the letter for my archive purposes, and for anybody that cares to read my rants, and some links for references. And if anybody who has any say in this stumbles acrross this, I would be thrilled to hear your response.

Another Logical Move

It is with interest I read your article in the Guernsey press on 08/12/2010 explaining that Guernsey
police were recommending that establishments no longer accept driving licences as a form of
identification. They instead recommend the Citizen Card.

I experienced this myself at an establishment on a recent Friday night out where, despite being
19 years old and carrying my full driving licence (which has sufficed as proof of age for the last 18
months) I was unable to order a pint with my meal, after being told that this was not sufficient proof
of age. This prompted me to have a quick look at the application procedure for a Citizen card, which
to the barman helpfully told me was to replace driving licenses as suitable proof of ID in pubs and
clubs going forward.

The process is quite simple; firstly you must take a photo of yourself to a “verifier”, who will certify
it is a true likeness of you. The next step for the verifier is to, and I quote,”Check the details on
the applicant’s original ID which must be one of the following: • passport • photo driving licence •
national identity card • card containing PASS hologram”.

Yes, that is correct; the procedure for application actually cites a “photo driving license” as a suitable
form of identification for comparative purposes – the very identification they are saying is unsuitable
for proof of age. So if a driving licence with a fraudulent DOB was shown to the “verifier”, then it
would be checked, there would be no reason to doubt it, and it would be placed on the Citizen card.

If somebody has provided fraudulent details to obtain identification in the form of a driving licence,
I don’t think they will be hesitant to do it again with a Citizen Card.

Tristan Knight
admin@snappeh.com
*****
**** ****
*****
Guernsey

Please withhold my address, however if you wish you may publish my email and name.

Please note, they changed the title that it was posted under. I can’t recall what it was posted under.

References

Citzen Card Scheme Website
Citzen Card Application Form – Where it states a driving licence is suitable
ThisIsGuernsey (Guernsey Press Article) – Stating that driving licences aren’t accepted anymore
Guernsey Press ‘Your Say’ Archive – Currently on this page, may change. Cant work out how to link to that particular post. Although it is ID 42940.