90 Days

Tony Blair wanted to lock up people, without charge, for 90 days. I’m pleased MPs from all parties stopped him.

The Prime Minister couldn’t justify “90 days”, except by asserting “the police wanted it.”

Well, some did, and the police’s view is important. Yet Ministers who listen to only one side of the argument can get the wrong answer – as we saw in Iraq and elsewhere with this Government.

On the other side of the debate were top judges and legal experts who, unlike the police, are specialists in drafting laws.

I and my colleagues listened to them and the police – and produced an alternative: we sought to give police extra time, without undermining traditional British liberties.

Our plan involved charging the suspect with a lesser offence – “acts preparatory to terrorism” – using evidence gathered for the initial arrest. That charge could be tested in Court, with the suspected terrorist in custody. Meanwhile the police could continue their investigations.

Ministers and the police rejected our case, citing one or two cases where it might not work. The main one involved a technical case, where messages were encrypted with a special code, which the suspect withholds.

Guess what? In such a case, the suspect would already be committing a serious offence under a law passed 5 years ago, which the Government has yet to implement fully.

I can’t trust a Prime Minister who talks tough, but doesn’t act.