The government is insisting that ID cards will be compulsory for citizens applying for passports

Progress towards compulsory identity cards resumed last week as the House of Commons voted to overturn a Lords amendment that would merely give passport applicants the option to apply for an ID card rather than insisting they do so.

The Lords inserted the amendment last week, claiming that linking cards to passports effectively breached the government's manifesto promise that ID cards would be voluntary at first.

But home secretary Charles Clarke disputed this logic, insisting that passports are voluntary documents and peers should now back the bill.

Clarke’s pleas are likely to fall on deaf ears, however. The indications are the Lords will again oppose the measure when it votes on the proposals later this week.

The government has claimed that the card scheme will help to prevent identity fraud. But experts have argued that unless the cards are compulsory, firms and public sector bodies using them to verify customers and citizens' identities will also have to provide alternative means of authentication - leaving loopholes that fraudsters could still exploit.