Posted on 03/10/2005 11:55:46 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
LONDON (AP) -
Prime Minister Tony Blair urged political opponents Thursday to support a new anti-terrorism law, insisting the legislation was vital to national security.
But critics of the Prevention of Terrorism Bill rejected the government's proposals in Parliament's upper chamber. They say the government must have stronger evidence before it imposing so-called "control orders" on terrorism suspects, including house arrest, curfews, electronic tagging without trial.
"We need these powers," said Blair. "To continue to water down and dilute this legislation is not responsible. It is wrong. They should stop it."
The government has won the backing of the House of Commons for the law.
But many peers in the House of Lords, which must also approve the legislation, remain opposed to key aspects of the bill. The main opposition Conservative Party, which holds most seats in the Lords, insists it must be time-limited and peers voted Thursday that the law should expire after 12 months. The Liberal Democrats want the burden of proof to be raised before any measures can be imposed.
Neither the government nor the opposition are in the mood for compromise.
"The House of Lords will stick firmly to what it decided," said Lord Strathclyde, who leads Conservative peers.
The government wants the power to impose control orders on suspects without trial - including restrictions on using the Internet or telephone, from meeting named individuals and travel bans. It says the law would be used sparingly, and only against suspects who could not be tried as evidence would be too sensitive to reveal in court.
If the proposed legislation were to pass, the government would have to request that a judge impose an order for house arrest, and would normally do so for all the other measures. But in emergencies, it has reserved the right for a minister to impose controls, as long as a judge is consulted within seven days.
The government wants the new powers on the books by March 14, when a law allowing it to lock up foreign terrorism suspects without trial expires. The law was ruled illegal by Britain's highest court.
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We don't need this legislation
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