ID card cost could nearly double

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Every person wanting a card will have to pay to have their fingerprints and other biometric data taken, in addition to the cost of the card.

Jacqui Smith said the "market" for providing the service was estimated at £200 million.

Ministers will sign contracts for biometric collection services early next year, and providers could include the Post Office and high street stores.

With seven million adults expected to sign up for cards, the cost for each individual of having their fingerprints and other biometric data taken would be around £29. That is on top of the charge for the card, which has been set at £30. The charge will also apply to anyone wanting a new passport.

Shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve said: "We already know that ID cards will do nothing to improve our security but may make it worse. Now we see that the already substantial cost to the tax payer is going to increase. This is particularly outrageous given the current economic crisis."

In a speech to the Social Market Foundation think tank, Ms Smith defended the cards, saying they would become an accepted replacement for lots of different forms of ID used now.

She said they would provide the "security" and "convenience" lacking for the use of birth certificates, utility bills and driving licences.

She said: "The time is fast approaching when the use of bills and bank statements to prove our identity will no longer cut it, and when our personal dictionary of different passwords for different purposes will become too unwieldy to work effectively."

New figures revealed the estimated cost of the scheme to taxpayers has increased by £45 million. It will now reach nearly £4.8 billion.