Counter-Terrorism Bill
10:30 am
Ben Wallace (Shadow Minister, Scotland; Lancaster and Wyre, Conservative)
I welcome you to the Chair, Mr. Bercow. At the outset, in response to the point made by the hon. Member for Reading, West, I would like to clarify the fact that I think that he is confusing two dames. Former Dame Pauline Neville-Jones has been involved with the Conservative party. She is now Baroness Neville-Jones of Hutton Roof and is a member of the shadow Cabinet. I am sure that it is not the first time that he has mixed up the dames.
The reason that I made the suggestion to my hon. Friend the Member for Reigate was because the balance of the witnesses was focused on the protection of human rights and the judicial body, as opposed to the operational aspect. I concede that the first witness today relates to the operational implication of the law. However, it is clear to some of us on the Opposition Benches who have operational experience in counter-terrorism that bad law affects not only rights, but the business of intelligence gathering.
Dame Stella Rimington has expert knowledge of intelligence gathering and, to my knowledge, no link to any political party. She was a first rate director general of the Security Services who, as my hon. Friend the Member for Newark pointed out, knows the bridge from one type of terrorism to the other, and could properly contribute to the process of the Committee. If we get part of the Bill wrong, it may have an impact on the ability to recruit sources and run informers, which is at the heart of the operational side of counter-terrorism. I think that she would have contributed greatly, and I hope that the Committee will take advantage of experience that is out there, rather than shut down any debate.