A scary use of police time

geoff

The tories need to quietly stand by their man on this. But pre-emptive attacks on the police are not the right answer nor is trying to drag Brown into it.

The police are normally trying to do the right thing and we should trust them until we see otherwise.

We really must not seek to politicise investigations.

Dewi

Do you believe Gordon Brown had no knowledge? I certainly don't -- it positively stinks of his clever-clever blow-up-in-your-face inept tactics.

luke

I can't imagine its any of the home affairs documents you mention.

I have a suspicion though that it could be treasury files, possibly market sensitive information.

Would be sensational if this was the link into preston for example.

All speculation on my part though.

Austin Barry

As Joseph Goebbels said:

"It is the absolute right of the State to
supervise the formation of public opinion."

And, if required, to send in Plod to shore-up the proposition.

Richard Holloway

It's still too early to tell, but I will be reading tomorrow's news with greater attention and a fair dose of fear at what is happening to this country.

C Powell

Two thoughts: -

1. How can any of these stories justify the use of the anti-terrorist police, for God's sake?!

2. I hope this finally wakes DC up to the destruction of civil liberties in this country and he gives it to Brown with both barrels tomorrow. The Tories also need to press and press for which Government Minister authorised this, especially given the search of his HoC office. This is an abuse of Parliamentary privilege and sovereignty, surely?

dilys

"Gordon Brown had “no prior knowledge” of what looks like calamitously heavy-handed policing. This could end up being a disaster for him."

Then it will serve a useful purpose.
BTW, he's been arrested not 'banged up' you media drama queen you.

SallyC

I hope it is.
Has anyone seen Guido?

Bruce Robertson

Britain's been sliding into a police state for some years. A late friend of ours saw it coming. We laughed at him. We were wrong,

Mike Kingscott

Nice try Geoff... This is Stalin-esque heavy-handed policing.

The Laughing Cavalier

Unfortunately, the Met and many other Police authorities have been well and truly politicised during the last eleven years. I, for one, believe none of Brown's protestations. Like most Nulabour politicians he only believes in democracy when it suits him.

Lance Grundy

Appalling. As David Davies has just said on Radio 4, this is like something out of Mugabe’s Zimbabwe - opposition politicians being intimidated by the police and arrested for opposing the government.

The police are now fully politicised. We’ve gone from the first warning signs of blatant political bias [police cars driving around London displaying “Vote Labour” posters] to Members of Parliament being arrested for opposing the government in less than four years.

This illustrates how far the tentacles of the liberal-left stretch into the British establishment and the powerful, vested interests the Conservative Party will be up against should they win power. These forces have the potential to make life very difficult for a future Conservative administration. Britain’s institutions are stuffed to the rafters with left-wing agitators and political placemen, naturally sympathetic to the Labour Party and hostile to the Tories. They need to be purged - and the Conservatives need to have a strategy in place to deal with them. As Boris Johnson has found though [re his ’sacking’ of Ian Blair] the institutional Leftism of the British establishment it is a multi-headed hydra. Cut off one head and another appears. This kind of thing needs to be stopped before it goes any further.

strapworld

Could this be the acting commissioner attempting to ingratiate himself with the Home Office?

The Home Secretary gone power crazy?

Brown stopping all opposition.

I thought Cameron was particularly WEAK this morning in answering a question on Mr Green. HE should be leading the onslaught without fear or favour. Demanding statements from the Home Secretary. Immigration Secretary and the Prime Minister. Conservatives should be touring all the media studio's and print rooms! demanding answers.

This is a serious threat to our civil liberties.......

WHERE IS CHAKROBHATI?

wonderfulforhisage

David Davis vindicated

Fraser Nelson

dilys, Green was detained for nine hours until liberated from the police station by David Davis.

(Okay, I made the last bit up...)

MarkS

Mandelson!

Gordon Brown

These are extraordinary times and extraordinary times require extraordinary action and solutions. It is the right decision in order to protect families and businesses up and down the country, that opposition politicians don't talk down the economy. It is the right decision that some restrictions should be placed on the opposition and the media in these extraordinary times, the causes of which were started in America.

Jim Carr

If Brown did not "know" about this, it is because he instructed his underlings that he should not "know".
Plausible deniability and all that, though in Brown's case, implausible deniability.
As for the weakness of Windmill Dave's responses, he is in a bind of his own making.
By not sacking Zac Goldsmith for his backing of the Greenpeace criminals, Windmill Dave's support for the rule of law is debatable.

Joe Reynolds

Let's hope that Mandleson is behind this. Then all the people who had a bet that he would have to resign before Christmas will get a nice present from the bookmakers. The rest of us will just get a nice present.

JimBob

Mr Brown - well said.

It does however come as no suprise to see that Ms. Chakrobarti and 'liberty' aren't bothered about the Tories.

dilys

Fraser, When I was banged up I was in a locked cell by myself for a lot longer than nine hours.
You telling me that they locked a Tory MP in a cell? I'd bet that they were no more than in the station and his cups of tea came in china rather than plastic.
Neverthe less, it was wrong but NTW it'll do him a power of good to see how lesser folks than he are routinely treated.

Milbro Sprite

Dilys, it was for your own protection. I'm sure Damian Green had not been binge drinking on alco-pops.