The Prime Minister's announcement that prosecutors can now use phone tap or
'intercept' evidence in court is a welcome development.
The safeguards surrounding the use of such evidence - including a veto by
the security services when they believe it may compromise the fight against
terror networks - are welcome, too.
Campaigners fear this
represents another assault on civil liberties in what many believe is
already the most spied-upon society in the western world.
Their
concerns should not be lightly dismissed. There has been massive growth in
phone tapping and CCTV surveillance in the past 20 years, and this should
not be allowed to go unregulated.
However, the present threat from
political and religious extremists - particularly Al Qaida and its clients -
is so serious that some diminution of our civil liberties at this time is
acceptable. If the threat recedes, state power in this field can, and
should, be rolled back.
The PSNI Chief Constable, Sir Hugh Orde,
has expressed frustration that Northern Ireland appears to have been left
out of the new phone tap recommendations.
The current threat, from
both home-grown and international terrorists, is such that ministers must
rapidly consider extending the phone tap legislation to the province.
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