Of course tens of millions of pets (and valuable animals like racehorses) have carried these identification tags for years with no obvious detrimental effects. In addition the Veri-Chip can link to a database of medical records. The human version has broadcasting capabilities offering, for example, GPS data of the bearer’s location. It is advertised as a foil against abduction attempts.

Before this becomes as ubiquitous as the mobile phone a public debate is essential. This is my penny ha’pence worth.

The Veri-Chip measures twelve by two millimetres and is encased in glass with a special polyethylene sheath that bonds to the skin. The cost of being chipped is currently about £150 and the chip’s lifetime is about twenty years. It should not take long before its broadcasting facilities are linked to the Internet. However no hospitals worldwide are yet linked directly via suitable scanning devices so currently the benefits are limited. On the other hand there are strong reasons for caution before proceeding.

A recent study of implanted beagles showed that chips inserted in shoulders had migrated from implant sites, a few by as much as eleven centimetres. An inflammatory response was not uncommon. Inserted mice with a genetic mutation in their p53 gene developed subcutaneous tumours called fibrosarcomas. In humans the corresponding gene causes Li-Fraumeni syndrome, a rare disease that predisposes patients to a wide variety of cancers. Even the USA’s Food and Drug Administration (the appropriate regulatory body) is displaying caution, announcing that the Veri-Chip would not be considered an FDA-regulated device if used for “security, financial, and personal identification/safety applications”. Note that medical use is not excluded.

The manufacturing company’s chief executives have all been implanted some months ago and report no side effects. Distributors in Europe, China and Latin America have been signed up. Four Florida hospitals are testing scanners. “Several hundred people” have contacted the firm with requests to be chipped. This can be done in a GP’s surgery. This is an idea whose time has come. If you have reason to object about the whole concept – on religious, moral, aesthetic, personal freedom grounds or whatever – it is also time to make your voice heard. Otherwise it will soon become a fait accompli.

What other treats do scientists have in store for us?

The tooth phone, for one, a chip implanted in a tooth. Circuitry tattooed in the skin, creating an ‘active’ skin that could display TV pictures, deliver orgasms by e-mail, regulate medicine delivery or serve as cosmetics. Hazard a guess as to which might become its most popular use. The very nature of society is at risk.

Is this the future of choice for our descendents? Let’s hope not.

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