Thursday, December 06, 2007

Why MP's must say NO again.

28 days might not sound a long time to be incarcerated when it's bandied about in conversation but imagine if you can being held in a cell like this for four weeks without necessarily knowing why you are there.

Imagine being picked up off the streets and stuck in a cell like this one (a remand cell) and then repeatedly interviewed day in and day out by determined police inspectors yet without having been charged with an offence. Are you sure you wouldn't end up admitting to something you didn't actually do, just to get it over with?

That is what has already happened to two innocent people already under our existing anti-terror legislation, and there may be others yet.

Under the latest Home Office proposals this could be extended to nearly two months. Put that in context, a six month prison sentence - such as which would be given for sex offences, violent assault or serious robbery would mean about the same time served 'inside'.

No I'm not a human rights softie but I cannot support a law that would undermine such a basic principle of our justice system.

The evidence everywhere is that this power has not been asked for by anyone other than the Met Police. The CPS say it's not necessary, the last Attorney General said it's not necessary and even the Police cannot point to a single occasion where they have needed the current 28 weeks.

It's more 'war on terror' scaremongering and even Labour MP's should be strong enough to say 'NO' for a second time.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

28 weeks? Shorely shome mishtake - Ed.

Marcus Wood said...

ooops! sorry about the typo there.