Police State
Hildy Johnson | 28.11.2008 14:05 | History | Social Struggles | South Coast
So now its official- we are living in a Police State. A Conservative MP has been arrested by 9 "anti-terrorism" officers at his constitutency home in connection with Home Office leaks. This is unprecedented. The AR folks were right all along. Still perhaps MPs can only blame themselves since they´ve voted through the end of official UK democracy
First they came for the criminals, then they came for the communists, then for the Jews, then for the Poles, then it was me.
Unless Conservative MP Damian Green has been leaking official secrets to Al-Q´eeda his arrest represents a rapid shift towards the establishment of a police state.
Either Browns government will not tolerate dissent in any form (last week they came down heavy on another conservative for suggesting that their bank bail-outs might risk a run on the pound) or the Met are out of control.
David Cameron has commented in a way that is very unpolitican like
"What do they think about in Britain today, counter-terrorism police are spending their time searching an MP's office, arresting him, holding him for nine hours, all on a day when British citizens are being killed on the other side of the world and all because, as far as I can see, he made public some information that was in the public interest that the government found uncomfortable.
"Well, let's hope that our democracy hasn't come to that."
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that Mr Green was arrested by members of its counter-terrorism command, thought to be Special Branch officers, and searches were conducted at his homes in London and Kent and at two offices in Kent and London.
It said the investigation was not terrorism related but did fall within the counter-terror unit's remit.
There is also much concern that the police were apparently able to search Greens office at the Houses of Parliament- again this is unprecedented.
Former minister Denis MacShane said that the Speaker should make clear that MPs were entitled to hold sensitive material in the same way as lawyers and doctors.
"To send a squad of counter terrorist officers to arrest an MP shows the growing police contempt for Parliament and democratic politics," he said.
"The police now believe that MPs are so reduced in public status that they are fair game for over-excited officers to order dawn raids, arrests and searches of confidential files held by MPs or those who work for them.
"I am not sure this is good for British democracy."
Unless Conservative MP Damian Green has been leaking official secrets to Al-Q´eeda his arrest represents a rapid shift towards the establishment of a police state.
Either Browns government will not tolerate dissent in any form (last week they came down heavy on another conservative for suggesting that their bank bail-outs might risk a run on the pound) or the Met are out of control.
David Cameron has commented in a way that is very unpolitican like
"What do they think about in Britain today, counter-terrorism police are spending their time searching an MP's office, arresting him, holding him for nine hours, all on a day when British citizens are being killed on the other side of the world and all because, as far as I can see, he made public some information that was in the public interest that the government found uncomfortable.
"Well, let's hope that our democracy hasn't come to that."
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that Mr Green was arrested by members of its counter-terrorism command, thought to be Special Branch officers, and searches were conducted at his homes in London and Kent and at two offices in Kent and London.
It said the investigation was not terrorism related but did fall within the counter-terror unit's remit.
There is also much concern that the police were apparently able to search Greens office at the Houses of Parliament- again this is unprecedented.
Former minister Denis MacShane said that the Speaker should make clear that MPs were entitled to hold sensitive material in the same way as lawyers and doctors.
"To send a squad of counter terrorist officers to arrest an MP shows the growing police contempt for Parliament and democratic politics," he said.
"The police now believe that MPs are so reduced in public status that they are fair game for over-excited officers to order dawn raids, arrests and searches of confidential files held by MPs or those who work for them.
"I am not sure this is good for British democracy."
Hildy Johnson
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