The Government has backed PASS, the UK national proof of age accreditation scheme which issues a photo identification card, as part of a crack-down on passport fraud.
Young people are being urged to leave their passports at home in favour of PASS cards, with retailers, licensed premises, police and local authorities being told to accept the identification as a valid proof of age.
The PASS scheme is funded by trade organisations including the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR) and the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA).
Launched in 2001, the scheme has struggled to become to become the accepeted form of ID among operators, who have suggested the government has failed to give enough backing to the cards.
The news that the Home Office was giving its public support for the scheme as part of a campaign to stop passports being lost and falling into the wrong hands was welcomed oby the ALMR and PASS.
PASS interim chair and ALMR chief executive Kate Nicholls said: “The PASS scheme is a fantastic, industry-driven scheme and it is one which we encourage retailers to support. The card itself is very secure with no successful forgeries to date. It is endorsed by the Home Office and we are encouraging venues to accept the card as the best method of ID. Phone-based apps for identification are proving flawed and insufficient against Home Office criteria, but PASS ticks every box.
“Not only are lost or damaged passports an inconvenience, they are enormously expensive to replace. Half of all lost passports, a considerable number, occur when holders take them to pubs, bars or nightclubs.
“There is an opportunity here for the sector to support its customers and to lead a fundamental change in attitudes regarding acceptable forms of ID. We echo the Home Office’s encouragement of customer to sign up to the scheme and leave their passports at home. This can only happen if there is widespread acceptance of PASS cards as the preferred form of ID across the UK.”
PASS was launched in 2001 following an initiative led by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) to provide a system of endorsement for card schemes.
It is supported by trade bodies the Association of British Bookmakers, Association of Convenience Stores, Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers, British Beer and Pub Association, British Institute of Innkeeping and the Wine and Spirits Trade Association.
