Charles Kennedy

Liberal Democrats | Ross Skye & Lochaber

Kennedy: Blair Dismisses Advice Of Law Lords Over 90 Day Detention Proposals

At Prime Minister’s Questions Charles Kennedy challenged the Prime Minister over the proposed 90 day detention period for terrorist suspects.

Mr Kennedy asked the Prime Minister to acknowledge that as well as taking advice from police, he must “take into account the advice from the Law Lords such as Lord Steyn and Lord Lloyd of Berwick, who have described detention without charge for 90 days as ‘exorbitant,’ and ‘unnecessary,’ and as ‘intolerable.”

The Prime Minister dismissed this, saying “whatever Lord Steyn may say, I’m afraid I prefer, yes I do, I prefer, the advice of the police.”

The Prime Minister then acknowledged he could lose the vote claiming, “sometimes it is better to lose and do the right thing than to win and do the wrong thing.”

Mr Kennedy asked the Prime Minister if he intended to reach a new consensus if the House of Lords rejected the 90 day proposal or “will he ram it through with the Parliament Act?”