Terrorism -vs- Freedom

I began blogging when the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 was passed. I took exception to the idea of detention without trial. The Labour Government seemed determined then - and still does - to prove its anti-terrorist credentials by destroying our liberties. Tony Blair and now Gordon Brown have consistently talked of weighing freedom against safety. It is a false choice.

Many times in the last three years, I felt I was wasting my time. Add up all my posts over the period and I have written a book. Without the support of a few other bloggers focussed on the issue, I would have lost heart long ago. For all this time we have waited for what has now happened - for a credible mainstream politician to stand up for our freedoms.

As I said in my first post, our patriotism is not so much to do with "blood and soil." At its best, it is a matter of values. Those values are rooted in Magna Carta, which set the laws of England above her rulers. They are rooted in habeas corpus, a simple writ which forces our rulers to account for their prisoners and to justify their detention to the courts. These things made Englishmen free long before democracy gave them the right to choose their government. They set limits that even a monarch could not cross. If you don't take pride in them, you simply don't understand what it is to be a freeborn Englishman.

The present Government clearly does not. David Davis clearly does.

I could not be more pleased that Mr Davis has chosen to take a stand. There is much at stake - and not just his political career. Our freedoms, the credibility of British politics and perhaps even the soul of the Conservative Party depend to some extent on how we respond to his decision. I hope all bloggers of good will will support him. He has raised a flag to which we should all rally and I for one thank him for it.