The government’s counter-terrorism bill contains provision for police to hold suspects for up to 42 days without charge — up from the current 28 days.
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith says it is a contingency measure — a “just in case” provision — and that if it were ever needed, the whole process would be subject to stringent judicial and parliamentary supervision.
But however many safeguards are built in, the idea of locking someone up for a month and a half without charge is deeply troubling to a lot of people, including several Labour MPs.
Tony Blair warned that since Sept. 11 2001, the rules of the game have changed, that with the advent of the suicide bomber and the huge potential scale of destruction , pre-emptive policing now has to come to the fore. Waiting for something to happen first is no longer an option.
Do you believe that traditional civil liberties should take precedence over security in the post 9/11 world?
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6 comments so far
Civil liberties are under threat? You bet they are!
Why this inept government is insisting that thye need to erode our liberties even more is beyond reason: it’s ludicrous.
Most people with a love of our liberty rights are sick to death of what is one of the most stupid and idiotic campaigns by a british government.
Can they never listen, learn and stop being so draconian and profoundly complacent?
Is there nothing that can be done to inform Mr Brown that he and his compatriots are nothing more than meddlers in a dangerous game of civil liberties?
It beggars belief that a government can be so intractable, illogical and irrational as this one is.
Save us from this governments folly - and save our freedoms!
- Posted by Keith M WarwickCivil liberties are a nice ideal in a perfect world, but they are friend and accomplice to the modern day criminal and terrorist. I am more than willing to have civil liberties severely watered down to aid law enforcement and increase safety in the UK. The law can record and monitor our every move as far as I’m concerned - if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about.
- Posted by Paul B in NYI believe that civil liberties in the UK are at threat. Nothing can justify watering them down.
‘Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both.’ Benjamin Franklin
- Posted by Wojtek“Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”, Benjamin Franklin.
I find that most appropriate here.
Also, these laws were apparently not needed during the IRA terrorism campaign against Britain - why are they needed now?
- Posted by DavidWake up, one world, one government. Each chip at our civil liberties, brings us a step closer to latter. Your have all been warned, tomorrow the chip implant, total control, no liberties, no freedom, a world dominated by a few, through fear!
- Posted by jamieThis ongoing farce is nothing more than the familiar Labour government tactic of creating a smokescreen of meaningless chatter to hide the real effect of its policies. While the fiddlers fiddle, the door stays wide open for the terrorists to come and go at their leisure.
- Posted by Mike T