Jul 16 2007
The UK government has another Guantanamo moment
We learn that the government is not content with doubling the length of time the authorities can hold someone in prison without charge or trial from 14 to 28 days, but hankers after the 90 days they originally wanted before Parliament told them to think again.
We should defend a free society by better intelligence, by refusing entry to suspicious people, by intercepting and eavesdropping on possible terrorists. Defending a free society also means preserving the rule of law, and that most important freedom - we are all innocent until proved guilty, and no-one should be detained without charge or trial for longer than a few days.
It is better to collect the evidence on potential terrorists before alerting them and their network to your work by arresting someone. It is also quite wrong to detain people who cannot be charged with a serious crime on the offchance that they might commit one. If we do that we have lost an important part of the freedom we are trying to protect.
I will continue to vote for 14 days maximum detention without charge or trial. Anything more can wreck the lives of the innocent. I thought the same about Northern Ireland and internment when I was myself on a an IRA death list.
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John Redwood has been the Member of Parliament for Wokingham since 1987. First attending Kent College, Canterbury, he graduated from Magdalen College...
Can anyone explain to me why we can’t continue an investigation after charge ? I don’t understand why this is a problem ?
Also, why do we not have the concept of a “holding” charge. We surly could have charged the person who drove a flaming 4×4 into GLA within 24 hours and then continued investigating to come up with other charges.
Reply: of course the police and CPS can develop and improve their case after charge - they need to have enough grounds to lay the charge before the magistrates.