The New Statespeople
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith appeared on the Today programme this morning. She tried to defend the suggestion that there is a need to increase the maximum period of detention without charge and allow suspects to continue to be questioned after charge.
Can you imagine a situation where we knew that there was a trend of growing complexity where somebody had to be released because in an exceptional case… they had come up against the buffers, they hadn’t been able to be brought to justice, where they had subsequently committed a terrorist act?
What now?
Humphrys asked her about the rather convenient timing of the head of MI5’s speech on Monday. Are we really to believe that that was a coincidence?
Smith: Um, well, yes, it was a complete coincidence.
Humphrys: It wasn’t. It was a spinning exercise, wasn’t it?
Smith: I think that’s a pretty outrageous charge to make against the independent director general of the security services…
Humphrys: Did he tell you that he was going to do it?
Smith: Yes he did tell us that he was going to do it…
Humphrys: And did you say to him perhaps the timing of this might look a bit suspicious, a bit odd?Smith: No I didn’t. If they choose to make a speech… actually that’s a decision for them.
Humphrys: We’re not questioning his right or entitlement to make a speech, we’re talking about the timing of it. Could you not have said to him, look this is all pretty delicate stuff, politically quite apart from anything else … it might make sense if you left it for a week afterwards or something… Why that particular timing? A bit extraordinary?
Smith: John, blah blah, blah… blah, blah, blah, blah… blah, blah… blah… Frankly there are conspiracy theories and there are conspiracy theories and I really do think you’re pushing it on this one.
So that’s us told then.
Some sort of humorous summing up of the situation probably ought to go here but it just isn’t funny.
sam_m said,
November 7, 2007 @ 2:13 pm
The sooner you Jocks get independence the sooner the rest of us will have a near English speaking refuge to flee to.
Garry said,
November 7, 2007 @ 2:33 pm
Heh. It’s an interesting image. Do it quick before the government turns it into a criminal offence…
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Spinning Exercise said,
January 8, 2008 @ 4:50 am
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