Freedom, security and justice: the thin end of the wedge for biometrics?

This paper examines an area of EU policy where the application of information and communication tecnology (ICT) poses acutely difficult problems for policymakers: freedom, security and justice. It focuses on the absence of an ethical debate about the adoption of ICT-based instruments in this area. It highlights the implausibility of simply adopting codes of ethical practice from the health sector to close the public trust deficit. It argues that health and justice professionals need to cooperate in order to create a code of ethical e-governance fit for an e-governance age.