Michael Howard backs control orders as pressure mounts on David Cameron

Michael Howard backs control orders as pressure mounts on David Cameron

Control orders should be kept to ensure the “human right” of citizens not to be the victims of terrorist attacks is upheld, a former home secretary said last night.

By Andrew Porter, Political Editor 9:00AM GMT 04 Jan 2011

Michael Howard said that he could not think of another way of ensuring people are safe from terrorists.

The intervention of the former Tory leader who was in charge of the Home Office in the last Conservative government, adds to the pressure on David Cameron to resist pressure from the Liberal Democrats to scrap the controversial orders.

Mr Howard said: “I think we have to remember that the most important human right for the citizens of our country is the right to go about their business without fear of being the victim of a terrorist attack.

“Lord Carlile, the Lib Dem peer who is adviser to government on terrorism, has warned that the essential features of control orders need to be kept if people are to be properly protected.

“Now if there is some alternative – it’s not easy to think of one – them of course it should be considered. But if there is no alternative way of keeping safe then I think control orders need to be kept.”

Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister, is pressing Mr Cameron to replace control orders with a less draconian regime. It is thought Theresa May, the Home Secretary, was also in favour of a change but she has appeared to cool on the idea when faced with the alternatives.

But Lord Carlile, the Government’s independent reviewer of terrorism laws, said the Coalition would not be forgiven if control orders imposing virtual house arrest on terror suspects are scrapped and there is another 7/7 style attack. The peer said he did not like the idea of the controversial orders, which include electronic tagging and home curfews, but insisted they are essential for security.

Mr Howard sits on a committee looking at whether bringing more suspects to trial through the use of intercept evidence is possible.

He added: “We are continuing to look at it and have been reappointed by present government and if we can come up with a way of doing that then it might help but it’s not easy.”

Pat McFadden, the former Labour minister, warned that Mr Cameron's desire to allow his coalition ally Mr Clegg to be able to claim that he has delivered on Lib Dem manifesto pledges "must not be allowed to play into national security policy and specifically the issue of what to do about control orders".

Writing in Progress magazine, Mr McFadden said: "The public's security is too important to be compromised by internal coalition politics. The terrorist threat we face demands that we do not disarm ourselves in the struggle against it.”

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