In the UK, the state has historically been seen as something that had its uses, but didn’t need to be involved in everything. A persons identity was their own, with the state getting involved only to make a few notes of a few things as and when necessary.

And this would be a good thing, yes?

However, recently that’s been changing. The government is going about its business, and its business is rehashing the role of the state – it will soon be the sole guardian of your identity. Which isn’t, to my mind, a good thing.

That is the French way; l’Etat runs the entire show, and the individual is entirely at the mercy of it.

And how’s that working for them?

A report (pdf) issued last week by CNIL, the French Data Protection Agency, reveals that as many as a million people have lost jobs – or didn’t get them in the first place – because of inaccuracies in the police STIC database (Systeme de Traitement des Infractions constatés, or “criminal record check system”).
…
Overall, CNIL identified an error rate of 83 per cent on STIC records

83 per cent error rate!?!?!

Fucking hell. That’s even less accurate than a News of the World article…

But fear not, the UK will be much better about the quality of its data, won’t it?

Probably not, actually; consider this: an organisation takes its lead from the people at the top. And at the top of Her Majesty’s Government is a paranoid, delusional muppet. And at the top of the Home Office is a delusional half-wit.

God help us…