Clarke to be challenged on data retention

9.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 13th Jul 2005

British Home Secretary Charles Clarke will this morning (10.30 Brussels time) meet the European Parliament's Civil Liberties Committee.

Leading member of that committee Baroness Sarah Ludford MEP, the Liberal Democrats' European justice spokeswoman, will challenge him to justify rushing through Brussels a shaky law on telecoms data retention when he has wisely eschewed knee-jerk legislation at home in the wake of the London bombings. She says:

"I congratulate Charles Clarke for the steady and non-hysterical manner in which he has discharged his duties since last Thursday. But he should treat legislation in Brussels with as much respect and caution as new laws at Westminster."

Notes:

Baroness Sarah Ludford will ask 6 questions:

• why does he reject the advice of MEPs (and the Council and Commission legal services) to choose a form of legislation which allows open debate and democratic scrutiny instead of a secretive cabal in the Council?

• will he give MEPs the cost-benefit studies produced by Member States for the Council discussion, so we can assess the true contribution to fighting terrorism weighed against the invasion of privacy, daunting expense and danger of information overload?

• if the measure is so crucial to anti-terrorism efforts, why is 'prevention' of terrorism not among its objectives?

• if harmonisation is essential, why does the plan allow variations between 6 months and 4 years' retention?

• how can we be sure, in the absence of safeguards on use of data and access to it, that it will not be the basis for generalised mass surveillance, fishing expeditions and 'profiling' exercises far removed from a specific and proportionate tool to catch terrorist suspects?

• how can Europeans ensure, if the information goes to third countries like the US, that they do not find themselves on 'no-fly' lists they are unable to challenge, because of websites they browsed or acquaintances they met?