It is undoubtedly a good thing that the Government has decided not to go ahead with its draconian, illiberal and unnecessary proposals to detain terror suspects without charge.
I did not like Jacqui Smith's tone, though. Basically she said that we opponents of the measure are a bunch of wimpish soft lefties and woe betide us if anything happens. And if it does happen, woe betide us if we don't pass this special piece of legislation in it that will have 42 days and heaven knows what else in it.
42 days' detention without charge is just plain wrong. There is nothing that will make it right, but it seems that the Government would quite cynically repay one assault on our liberties with another.
Smith's comment that "I don't believe that it's enough to cross our fingers and hope for the best" - well, for all the good ID cards are going to do, their massive cost is the equivalent of doing just that.
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4 comments:
The ability to insult the opponents of 42 days as 'soft' and 'endangering the people' was always the point anyway. Very low politics.
They've got their insulting rights now so they're happy to leave it.
And if 42 days has been found to be wrong after months of intense debate and scrutiny, it sure as hell will be wrong as a panic measure.
I think that the Government has been playing a very nasty game indeed with this.
This is less a comment and more a shameless plug, but it's in a good cause: Liberty has created a website called www.42writers.com, which is a powerful collection of essays, poems, and stories by 42 contemporary writers, including Ian Rankin, Philip Pullman and Ali Smith.
We at Liberty would be very grateful if you would take a look at the website and consider linking to it.
Done and I've made a new post linking to it.
Very impressed that you have spent your Sunday doing this:-)
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