UK passports given biometric breathing space

The US looks set to extend its deadline for requiring UK passports to contain biometric data by another year, granting the government extra time to introduce the controversial technology.

The US Senate has approved a one-year extension to its stipulation requiring UK travellers entering the country under its visa waiver programme to carry biometric data on their passports.

Once the extension has presidential approval, the UK will have until October 2005 to introduce the technology.

The news will be a welcome relief to the UK Passport Service (UKPS), which launched a trial of three types of biometric measurements earlier this year, aiming to introduce the technology by 2005.

But the trial, set up in conjunction with supplier Atos Origin, suffered initial delays following hardware, software and usability glitches. The trial will not now be complete until October.

The UKPS welcomed the Senate decision. "We lobbied to have this deadline extended and will continue to work to ensure that any new measures are introduced with a minimum of disruption," it said in a statement.