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Prevention and Suppression of Terrorism

The hon. Gentleman is clarifying his position, and obviously he is free to do so, but I do not agree with the supposition, and judging by the way in which my hon. Friend the Member for Winchester (Mr. Oaten) shakes his head—he would have been party to the understanding to which the hon. Gentleman alludes—it is not an event that he can recall. Surely in the circumstances it would be irresponsible not to signal that we should today pause and reflect on the changes that are necessary to the flawed control order system. Surely it is the role of the House to scrutinise the effect of control orders, and to draw a line in the sand when it is abundantly obvious to all that they need to be reviewed and replaced. I hope that the Minister will respond to our objections and reservations, accepting the seriousness with which they have been held and developed over a prolonged period. Those objections are sincere and have been confirmed by experience.