Cover Story

RACE AND CULTURE: ‘Israel’s actions affect our security’

24 September 2005

John Denham tells Peter Oborne that the domestic fight against terrorism requires the consent of the Muslim community

‘We now know,’ he added, ‘that access to a wide range of previously personal information can be enormously useful in responding to terrorism and preventing deaths, and often in unpredictable ways. I don’t suppose anyone foresaw that using ID cards to purchase a mobile phone would have played such a significant role in investigating the Madrid bombings. CCTV cameras were crucial in the London bombing investigation, yet virtually none were installed with terrorism in mind.’ He continued: ‘I do believe that we should rapidly drop the absolute objections to information-gathering that are still heard.’

He is more sceptical about the banning of Islamic organisations, such as al-Muhajiroun, which allegedly promote terrorism. ‘The wisdom of this is not clear,’ he says. ‘Only a year ago the Home Office was advising the Cabinet that the government would be ill-advised to do this. Now they are to be banned.... As far as I can see, in the intervening 12 months there has been no change in the situation as far as the intelligence is concerned. It’s more that there’s been a change of mood that makes the government eager to be perceived to act against these organisations.’

Denham asks, rhetorically, ‘Will suppressing these groups contribute to making the country safer? Will it even make a significant impact in a world where so much information is spread by the internet and in small groups? Will suppressing these organisations help or hinder the alienation of young people? These are crucial questions,’ he adds, ‘and there must be concern that the government agenda is sometimes driven by public and media pressure in this area, rather than by a concern for what is most effective.’

Equally, he is sceptical about Charles Clarke’s proposal to create a new offence of incitement to terrorism. He says, ‘Either the courts will set the threshold so high that only the most gratuitously offensive comments are caught, or we will find that they are coming down on the type of controversial views that should probably still be allowed in a free society. More importantly, like most of the 12-point plan, the impact on our security will be marginal.’