The bill to introduce a national identity card is one of the most controversial measures set out in today's Queen's speech and is likely to strain at Tony Blair's reduced majority.

The first attempt at a bill to set up a national identity register and roll out biometric ID cards to the general population fell in the last parliament but the government hopes to resurrect it.

With Labour's majority down from 161 to 67 since the election, the bill's passage is not guaranteed but ministers privately believe they can rely on the backing or abstention of some Tory MPs to get it through its second reading vote within a fortnight.

There are also signs the government may offer some concessions to its bankbenchers to safeguard the bill.

Peter Hain, the Northern Ireland secretary, insisted at the weekend that there was overwhelming public support for ID cards, but conceded ministers might reconsider some of the detail.

"I think we can now build a consent at the beginning and that will be very healthy for everybody concerned. So yes, it will be different, but I think it will be positive," he told BBC1's Breakfast with Frost programme.

The home secretary, Charles Clarke, might strengthen the powers of the ID cards commissioner, a regulatory office created by the bill, and introduce extra safeguards relating to access to the national identity register.

The government says that the cards, available to everyone legally resident in the UK from 2012, will help Britain "meet the challenges of the 21st century". The section on the scheme in the Queen's speech said the register and cards would help protect people from identity fraud, disrupt the use of false and multiple identities by terrorists and other criminals and tackle illegal working and immigration abuse.

Critics of the plans argue they will curb civil liberties and divert large amounts of public money into the scheme with no clear evidence it will meet its stated aims. Ministerial forecasts put the cost at around £3bn, although individuals could be charged an estimated £87 for a card.

The identity register and cards will encode biometric identifiers - such as fingerprints - on an electronic chip to provide what ministers claim will be a gold standard of identity. The details on the card can be cross-referenced against a national database before the holder can see a doctor or use other public services, such as schools or libraries.

Similar technology is expected to become more common over the next decade as the United States introduces passports with a digital image of the bearer's face on a chip.

The bill announced today will also provide for making the cards compulsory at a future date - and introducing penalties for those who fail to register for them.