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In the blink of an eye

Alistair Scott

Wednesday, 13th February 2008

Alistair Scott uses his baby-blues to fast-track his way into the UK

I am fortunate to have had quite a few casual compliments about my blue eyes over the years (vanity tip: turquoise- shirts always accentuate them), but the only person ever to take a specific interest in my irises was my formidable Scottish great-aunt. However, as Scotland’s first female eye specialist, I suppose Dr Janet Ferguson Steel was entitled to take an interest in her grand-nephew’s ophthalmic health.

In recent years, though, the Home Office has been showing an interest in my irises for their biometric properties as part of its mission to use ‘Cutting Edge Technology To Modernise UK Border Control’ (their initial caps). Having been leafleted about the IRIS scheme — you might think the name is self-explanatory, but the Home Office has insisted on creating the oh-so-clever acronym IRIS for ‘Iris Recognition Immigration System’ — I decided that as a frequent traveller it was probably time to enrol.

After all, if, as Herman Melville said, ‘the eyes are the gateway to the soul’, why not make them multitask and be the gateway to the UK as well?

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