UK News 11-03-2005 Sunset Clause Keeps MPs Up All Night who: Home secretary Charles Clarke what: Calls for Lords to back down after marathon debates over Prevention of Terrorism Bill where: House of Commons, LONDON when: Friday snippet: "The UK was facing a looming constitutional crisis," reports The Financial Times on Friday, "after an all-night legislative battle over Tony Blair’s controversial anti-terrorism powers." The marathon Parliamentary session is the result of a week of disputes between the two Houses over the Prevention of Terrorism Bill. On Tuesday, The Telegraph was already describing the law as being "in tatters" after peers "inflicted a humiliating and damaging defeat on the Government when they voted by 249 to 119, a majority of 130, on a Liberal Democrat amendment to ensure all control orders enforcing restrictions on terrorist suspects would be made by a judge". The Lords went on to give their backing to five changes, including a "sunset clause" on the Bill which would see the law repealed on November 30th. Former Lord Chancellor Lord Irving was among the 24 Labour rebels who supported the clause. "I`m astonished that unelected politicians are gambling with people`s lives," said an unnamed government source, quoted in The Independent on Wednesday. "It`s very brave of them to think the country can be left unprotected after 14 March." "The Lords want to ensure a higher level of evidence is required before the orders - which restrict the movement of suspected terrorists without the need for a court conviction - can be imposed," explains The Times. "They also want to enshrine greater powers for the Privy Council when it carries out annual reviews of each case." On Thursday, home secretary Charles Clarke made further concessions and the Commons again passed the Bill, despite 37 Labour MPs voting against the government. The debate began in the Lords at 11.30am and carried on through the day before returning to the Commons in the early hours of Friday with three key amendments attached - an increase in the burden of proof, the so-called sunset clause and the Privy Council review. In their third vote since the session began on Thursday morning, the Commons overturned the amendments and the debate once again returned to the Lords on Friday afternoon. "After over 24 hours of parliamentary `ping pong`," says the BBC, the Lords voted by 176 to 128 to support a Lib Dem move to raise the burden of proof against suspects. They then voted for a fourth time by 194 to 123 to reinstate their proposal for a 12-month time limit on the bill." If no deal is reached by Monday, explains The Scotsman, "Britain will be left with no effective terrorism law, since previous measures expire on that day. The immediate consequence would be the release from custody of several suspects currently detained without trial at Belmarsh prison on the advice of the security services." Eight foreign terror suspects - prisoners E,H,K,P and Q, plus Muslim cleric Abu Qatada, who has been convicted in Jordan for inciting terrorist acts - are about to be released; if the bill becomes law, the government will apply to a judge for control orders to immediately put them under effective house arrest. "It seems utterly unrelenting on both sides," writes Philip Webster, political editor of The Times. "I`m usually pretty good at judging the mood of the House but I don`t recall a time when the Lords have behaved in this way. They appear to be almost revelling in the fact that they are standing up to a Labour Government. Something must be going on behind the scenes as they will all want to get home for the weekend. We are nearing the end of the hunting season so I would have thought the Lords in particular would want to be out - but maybe this is better than the thrill of the chase." [... more]

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