The advertising expenditure, which works out at roughly £300 for every ID card applicant so far, covers online and offline advertising used to communicate with businesses and consumers in the north west of England and London, according to the IPS.
"The messages, both online and offline, highlighted general issues around the risks of identity, theft and fraud and encouraged people to be 'idsmart' by being aware of the risks," said Home Office Minister Meg Hillier, in a parliamentary written answer published on 9 March 2010.
The Home Office's executive agency also spent £87,700 on marketing and £11,930 on branding in relation to ID cards and the National Identity Register. Hillier told Nick Hurd MP that the marketing expenditure was used for developing and printing brochures, leaflets and application guidance notes for consumers. She also said that the IPS had spent nothing on public relations.
Separately, in a parliamentary written answer published on 8 March 2010, Hillier told Edward Timpson MP that the IPS has received 4,307 ID card applications from people living in the the north west of England.
ID cards were first introduced for foreign nationals living in Britain in November 2008 and are now available to UK citizens living in the north west of England on a voluntary basis. The scheme expanded to London in February, where cards are now available to 16-24 year olds. The Home Office plans to make the cards available to the entire population in 2012.
A Home Office spokesperson told GC News: "We have undertaken a public information campaign to ensure that people are able to make an informed choice about whether or not they would benefit from having an ID card. It is imperative that businesses are also aware of how ID cards can be used to ensure they are able to recognise them and make use of them effectively.
"Both IPS and other government departments routinely inform the public about the products and services we offer and ensure that we utilise the most cost effective channels that provide us the greatest reach for our messages in appropriate locations."
Clare Hirst, senior analyst at Kable, said: "Education of the public about the ID card is critical in promoting understanding of exactly why it can be useful, but there is still uncertainty about the future of the project, particularly with the possibility of a change of government."
Staff
You have characters left
Please read our community standards.
Closing this window without pressing "Post your comment" will result in your words being lost.
Are you sure?
Thank you for your comment. This has been submitted for moderation.
Your comment has been successfully posted.
Sorry, something has gone wrong and this action cannot be completed. Please try again later.