Yesterday's papers revealed a bid to resurrect plans for a major expansion of Government powers to monitor the phone calls, email exchanges and website visits of every person in the UK. This is a return to a policy opposed by both Coalition parties in opposition and abandoned by the last Government.
Whoever is in Government the grand
snooping ambitions of security agencies don't change. There is an element of whoever you vote for, the Empire strikes back.
The Coalition agreement explicitly
promised to 'end unnecessary data retention' and restore our civil liberties. Do they still believe it? At
the very least we need less secret briefing and more public consultation if this
promise is to be abandoned.
