Clause 89 — Searches, examinations and fingerprinting: England and Wales

Part of Orders of the Day — Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Bill — [2nd Allotted Day] – in the House of Commons at 8:45 pm on 26 November 2001.

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Photo of James Paice James Paice Shadow Spokesperson (Home Affairs) 8:45, 26 November 2001

I am grateful to the Minister for giving way again. As she describes it, that is perfectly reasonable, but she is on very dangerous ground, even with the example she gives.

Under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, this Government have made it a criminal offence to trespass on private ground in a number of situations. Therefore, in theory, what the Minister has said could apply to somebody caught trespassing with a dog off a lead in Snowdonia. That is a criminal offence according to her Government's legislation and her remarks apply to it, but what about somebody arrested for a road traffic offence? Is she suggesting that, under these proposals, somebody detained in a police station for any criminal offence—perhaps an ordinary traffic offence—must be subject to all those procedures as it is vaguely possible that it may one day be proven that they had some link with a terrorist activity? In the ordinary balance of events, that is highly unlikely.