Passport applicants to be interrogated about private and family life

More than 600,000 people a year are going to be forced to attend compulsory interrogations at their nearest Identity and Passport Service interrogation centre.

Once an application has been made on paper, an applicant is 'invited' to telephone a call centre, in order to arrange a face to face interrogation.

James Hall, chief executive of the Identity and Passport Service, said that questions would be drawn from a stock of 200 based on the "social footprint" of each applicant, including their family history, current household, including all occupants, past addresses, financial background, including mortgage data and credit references, and even the background of the person countersigning the form.

The questions will be based on information from electoral registers, birth and marriage certificates, bank mortgage rolls and credit reference agencies.

Teenagers are likely to be asked about their parents and their background, and who else lives at home with them.

There would be no pass or fail mark but officials would make a judgment on the basis of the whole interview whether an applicant was telling the truth.

If there are suspicions, in some circumstances, police might be called.

From 2009, fingerprints will also be taken from every applicant.

Police State Britain.