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Counter-Terrorism Bill

I shall come to my noble friend’s point a little later in my response. As a Government, we feel that the imbalance in that risk is simply too great and not legislating is a risk we should not take with the lives of our population. Having made that decision, how can we safeguard the rights of individuals caught up in this process? There has been detailed consultation across the board on this issue. The noble Baroness, Lady Ramsay, pointed out that she has never known so much consultation by a Home Secretary. The other place demanded a number of extra safeguards, including stronger parliamentary involvement. A number of people from all parties decided that. I have to be careful what I say, but to my mind the judicial safeguards that already exist are without a doubt the most important to secure an individual’s rights. It is important to remember that a judge may grant extensions for only a few more hours—or maybe a day—over the 28-day limit, but in highly pressured situations where the CPS and police are trying to secure sufficient evidence to charge, those additional few hours may make all the difference. Additionally, the fact that the DPP has to submit a bid in conjunction with a senior police officer to the Home Secretary before the Home Secretary may increase the detention limit adds further to that protection. As we know, the current DPP would look at that in great detail if he were about to do it. The fact that the Home Secretary has to go before the House, as has been pointed out by noble Lords, will focus that Home Secretary’s mind. I do not believe that it will be done lightly. I was concerned, as are a number of others in the Committee, that the safeguards had become rather cumbersome. Indeed, I was very concerned, so specifically asked ACPO if they were workable. It said, ““Yes. The proposal is a bit clumsy but it is workable””. That is good enough for me. As the noble Lord, Lord Tebbit, said, we can readdress it in the future anyway. Some have suggested that there may be confusion between the role of Parliament and the judiciary. I can understand that, but it represents a misreading of the provisions. The role of Parliament is to discuss and, if so minded, approve the order-making power to apply for and grant up to 42 days’ detention. The courts, in contrast, assess on a case-by-case basis whether the police and CPS need more time to collect and examine evidence in order that a charge may be brought. I believe that it is the judiciary that safeguards the rights of the individual. Concern has been expressed about parliamentary debate being limited. I could go into the things that could be debated, but there is no point, as I identified the key balance between the two. As I have already said, ACPO considers this to be workable, and although it is rather inelegant, it possibly gives more protections for those caught up in the process. Clearly Members from all parties in the other place felt they wanted those, so they got them. A great deal of nonsense has been talked about global comparisons. First, I should say that as long as our legal system is compatible with our human rights obligations—I am entirely satisfied that the Bill’s proposals are compatible—I do not really care what other countries do. My prime concern is the safety of our citizens and visitors to this country. I am afraid that the noble Lord, Lord Dear, and others, delude themselves if they think that people in these other countries are held for these short times. I am constantly talking to my opposite number. I will not go into detail—I get into enough trouble as it is—but I assure you that you are bloody lucky to live in this country. That is all I would say. I do not intend to go into the detail here, but I might do so on a private one-on-one basis. I also never cease to be amazed how people who despise and hate our country and who are here illegally fight tooth and nail to avoid being sent to any other jurisdiction. I try to send them to all sorts of others, but they do not want to go to any of them. Finally, and importantly, there is understandable concern that this proposed back-pocket measure will alienate communities. That is an important point. I am particularly proud of the advances we have made in the past 15 months with the ““prevent”” strand of our counterterrorist strategy. We have done a great deal in that area. In the case of this Bill we have undertaken extensive consultation, including with representatives from Muslim communities and other faith and community groups. It was quite clear that pre-charge detention was in no way near the top of their concerns and we have seen no evidence to suggest that the 28-day limit has undermined their support in dealing with terrorism. However, as we have made clear, we will undertake a review of the impact of counterterrorism legislation on the Muslim community.