The leader of the House has announced that the Counter-Terrorism Bill will be debated in the Commons on Tuesday April 1.

Harriet Harman confirmed the second reading date during business questions in Parliament on Thursday.

Ministers insist the legislation, which contains measures to extend the maximum period of pre-charge detention for terror suspects beyond the current limit of 28 days, is essential.

However a similar move to extend the limit to 90 days prompted former prime minister Tony Blair's first government defeat in 2005 and several Labour MPs are set to rebel again.

A recent Dods Poll of MPs showed that only 40 per cent of Labour members back extending the limit to 42 days, the government's favoured option, meaning ministers will struggle to secure enough support to pass the Bill.

Home secretary Jacqui Smith is reported to be prepared to accept an amendment to increase parliamentary accountability for cases when police want to detain a suspect beyond the current 28 days.

Under the proposal, MPs would debate whether to invoke the emergency powers within 10 days of a government decision.

In order to avoid embarrassment, key votes on amendments at report stage could also be delayed until after the local elections.

Shami Chakrabarti of campaign group Liberty said: "We hope that this delayed second reading will provide space for calmer reflection after the local elections and allow the government to join the cross-party consensus around alternative counter-terror policies."