Blunkett: enemy of the state

Blunkett really is trying to turn the UK into a police state. His latest proposed changes to the law have just been announced, and include (my initial thoughts in parentheses):

• Police to be permitted to arrest suspects for any offence. (Such as dropping a cigarette butt on the pavement.)
• New powers to fingerprint suspects at the roadside and to take DNA samples. (Mandatory DNA testing and fingerprinting in the street for people who haven’t been charged with anything.)
• Allowing police to take DNA and fingerprint samples covertly - for example, by undercover officers. (National DNA database of potential trouble-makers?)
• Allowing the courts to draw inferences from a refusal of a drugs search. (Black guy objects to being searched for the 5th time in a month? Must be guilty!)
• Testing people for class A drugs no matter what they were arrested for, regardless of whether they have actually been charged with an offence. (Arrested for a minor offence? Now they can get you for that line of charlie you did on Saturday night too.)
• Extending search warrants to cover all properties connected to a suspect. (How tenuous a connection?)
• Giving civilian Community Support Officers the right to stop and search people for weapons. (To free up police for front-line policing apparently - I rather thought stopping people carrying weapons was front line policing…)
• New legislation to deal with demonstrations outside parliament. (Want to peacefully protest against the government? You’ll probably be labelled a terrorist!)

The full consultation paper (.pdf) can be found on the Guardian’s site. You can (and probably should) send your responses to the proposals to:

Policing: Police powers
Police Leadership and Powers Unit
Second Floor Allington Towers
19 Allington St
London SW1E 5EB
Email: Alan.Brown@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk

Mandatory fingerprinting and DNA testing, a stealth DNA database, biometric ID cards, hundreds of new criminal offences, internment without trial, evidence obtained under torture admissible in court, suspects and their lawyers not allowed to see or challenge evidence given in secret, restrictions on gatherings of three or more people. Where the hell’s this going to end?

Leave a Reply