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London: The House of Lords was due to vote Sunday on government plans to allow police to detain terrorism suspects for up to six weeks without charge, amid expectations the proposals would be defeated.
High profile figures and peers including former intelligence chief Eliza Manningham-Buller and former Attorney General Lord Goldsmith have criticised the proposal to extend the maximum period of detention from 28 to 42 days.
Opponents say the Bill is draconian, an affront to civil liberties and unnecessary. With both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats set to vote against the plans, commentators predict the government will lose.
Defeat in the Lords will not kill the legislation outright but will delay the Bill's passage and embarrass Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
Under the proposals, both Houses of Parliament would have to vote on any decision by the Home Secretary to allow police to detain suspects for up to 42 days in the face of an "exceptional terrorist threat".
In August, the cross-party House of Lords Constitution Committee described the plans as ill-advised and a "recipe for confusion" that could jeopardise trials.
Amendment
Lord Dear, an independent peer and former Chief Constable of West Midlands Police, has put forward an amendment opposing plans for the extension, calling it a political device to "try and appear tough on terrorism".
"If you go to 42 days ... you give a gift to those who recruit terrorists saying this is yet another example of a repressive regime," he told BBC radio.
In June, the House of Commons narrowly approved 42 days but the government's majority was slashed to just nine after a revolt by 36 backbench Labour MPs.
Salient feature: how the bill will work
- The new powers will apply only when there "is a grave exceptional terrorist threat" such as an attack on Britain.
- A senior police officer and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) will have to issue a report saying more than 28 days is needed to obtain evidence.
- The Home Secretary would then have to obtain independent legal advice on whether there was a grave, exceptional threat, that the extra powers were urgently needed and that the provision was compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.
- The Home Secretary would then sign an order immediately, allowing police to hold suspects for up to 42 days. Those powers would last for a maximum of 30 days.
- The order must be placed before parliament as soon as possible, along with a copy of the legal advice received. The powers would lapse after seven days unless both Houses of Parliament approve the measure.
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