Ministers are to press ahead with the mandatory fingerprinting of new passport applicants using royal prerogative powers to sidestep the loss of their identity card legislation last week.
The police are expected to be given the authority to carry out checks against this newly created national fingerprint database.
The home secretary Charles Clarke has authorised the passport service to acquire 70 new passport service offices across the country so that all adult applicants for new documents can be interviewed in person from next year. The service currently has seven offices.
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Passport applicants must give fingerprints