28 Days, Earlier

So, the unthinkable has happened and a government bill, personally endorsed, sponsored and indeed pushed by Tony Blair, has seen one of its provisions defeated by a majority 0f 31, despite a government majority in the Commons of 66 MPs and the recall of Gordon Brown and Jack Straw from missions overseas. Blair says that the police claim 90 days of detention without charge is necessary to deal with the Terrorist Threat (TM) and that anyone who argues otherwise is ignoring the advice of the people who know best and gambling with the lives of the entire country. Parliament, however, has a responsibility to consider more than one angle and weight up the advice, concerns and best interests of everyone, not just the police, and decide accordingly. And yesterday, they did just that.

I'm not entirely convinced about the compromise amendment proposing 28 day detention, which was eventually accepted, was right either, but I do feel that in this case Parliament has done its job and prevented the government simply having its way without question.

Of course, as Blair personally staked so much on this bill, there are a lot of questions being raised about the strength of his leadership. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.