http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_32/b3946009_mz001.htm
"Britain's idea of a centralized database that allows for sharing of information among government agencies, which is what it wants at least at home, is unusual in Europe, where many countries with ID cards have strong legal protections in place to prevent this kind of information sharing, according to the anti-ID card lobby NO2ID. The group claims that in Germany the centralization of such records is forbidden for historical reasons, while Belgium uses modern encryption methods and local storage to protect privacy and prevent data-sharing"
