In other words we are going back to the dog license with added security.

Good!
You know this will help an awful lot with things like dog theft and puppy farming (maybe dog fighting) it will only take one phone call from a concerned citizen and by the power of the computer, dog wardens/councils will be able to see exactly how many dogs should be on a premises and their coinciding microchip numbers, on entering such premises they will immediately find dogs not registered and get them home or know there are broken regulations and breeding going on from bitches/dogs not registered there.
I just hope that the fee will be a minimal one, less than £15 a year, as we don't want pensioners or people on low incomes/people with many dogs being penalized here, but in the long run, it can help with a lot of dog related issues from irresponsible owners to the more serious problems. **thumbs up!**