Lib Dems to oppose house arrests

It appears that someone in Westminster has grown a spine as Lib Dems will oppose house arrests according to the BBC.

"Home affairs spokesman Mark Oaten told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "It's a matter of principle for us that we can't have a situation where the Home Secretary is able to impose house detention now on UK nationals as well as foreign nationals."

The Lib Dems believed the Home Secretary should allow phone tapping evidence in prosecutions.

"We think there could be a role for some form of control order - tagging, surveillance, limitation on use of mobile phones - but not with the Home Secretary's say so. That must be done with a proper judicial process, a judge involved in making those decisions," said Mr Oaten.

"These two measures together could give the balance we need to protect citizens, but also keep those very important principles of justice." "

To which Il Duce replied:

"that much of wire-tap evidence could not be used in courts, partly because it would put the lives of intelligence sources at risk."

How exactly? The officers processing wire-taps are not standing in the room next door with one ear pressed to the wall. They are nicely tucked up in their offices in Cheltenham surrounded by piles of the best security that money can buy, and piles of the best security that money cannot buy. If there are undercover agents, or innocents with nothing to do with the case, who's names get mentioned in the taps then simply bleep them out. It's not as if they are worried about the general public's privacy and where talking about introducing wide spread wire-tapping, as basically all electronic communications are routinely intercepted and processed anyway. Perhaps the real problem is that where the evidence from the intelegence services to be tested in court it would be found, like the intelegence of Iraq having WMD ready to fire in 45 minutes, deeply flawed. Even the Tories appear a little unsettled by these plans:

"Tory shadow home secretary David Davis has said he is worried about extending special powers to cover British citizens, saying "internment" could backfire by provoking resentment.

The Tories suggest letting security-cleared judges to view evidence gathered by phone-tapping could allow more terror cases to come to court. "