Partner of Guardian Journalist detained

Live reaction here

Is anyone actually surprised that the laws are abused in this way?

Not in the slightest bit surprised, America said “jump”, Cameron et al said “how high? and can we have a nice spike to land on?”

Pretty normal.

The Cabinet Office said the legislation was not intended to outlaw the TUC conference or restrict campaigning activity on policy issues.

Wasn’t intended, but would…

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-23750845

Is anyone actually surprised that the laws are abused in this way?

Nope. Laws were abused in Northern Ireland for decades but no one seemed to give a shit. So why not try it again?

Exactly what the concerns around the terror laws were about. But we have them now, so all those who said “No problem if you have nothing to hide” can think about how wrong they were at their leisure.

Pretty disgraceful behaviour, but then I don’t expect anything more from them. Eg wasting millions having police sat 24/7 outside an Embassy, searching everyone who comes out in case it’s Julian Assange. They’re determined to make him suffer, legal or not. In fact I’m surprised we’ve not just stormed the Embassy by now.

Even our local councils use them to spy on us. Once governments grant powers for on thing then they can be used for others. Those powers are never taken got rid of when an opposition final makes it to government, they me object while out of power but they are far to useful. This is how we unknowingly stroll into a police statue.

See loads of posts to this thread with the outrage of what is going regarding this legislation. Yep that’s right, no one is really interested and those in power know it and use it. Now if it was who won stricktlyXnotalent that would be different.

because everyone knows people with same sex partners that are not uk born are an obvious terrorist risk and a danger to daily mail readers around the uk.

Now if they where xfactoring in the jungle while dancing on ice, with big brother watching, then plebs would care and respond

if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to worry about.
if you tell the world about what we hide you and anyone you know should be very worried.

Is anyone actually surprised that the laws are abused in this way?
Nope. Laws were abused in Northern Ireland for decades but no one seemed to give a shit. So why not try it again?

Too true. Bloody shameful.

Pretty normal.

The Cabinet Office said the legislation was not intended to outlaw the TUC conference or restrict campaigning activity on policy issues.

Wasn’t intended, but would…

Wow, just wow. Banning dissenting campaigns 12 months before an election.

So much for democracy.

This is really really wrong everyone responsible from the arresting officers up the chain to the person who initiated it should lose their jobs and their pensions.

Talking about it on the radio today and Louise Mensch pops up to say that it was fair and not an abuse of powers, WTF has Louise Mensch got to do with it, ex MP lives in New York………. is she a well known expert of this type of legal matter?

Also claims from the Guardian editor that people from GCHQ were in his building breaking hard drives to deny access to the information, if that is true then we are in troubling times.

I have no problem with his detention. He’s well known as being more than just the partner of the Guardian journo who is known to have received classified papers from Snowdon. He also works to assist him and in this case was making a journey having met with a film maker in Germany. It was reasonable to assume he might be a courier in this case.

Hearing his partner, a foreign national, bang on about how he’s going to undermine and attack the UK even more aggressively justifies the action even more.

undermine and attack

You mean expose the dirty secrets done in our name?

The whole thing stinks although none of the main parties will do anything about it apart from the usual grandstanding. If I were of a more conspiratorial bent I’d be looking at the latest royal baby news as a diversionary tactic to get this story off the front pages..

well ask yourselves who brought these laws in and why, terrorisem.
It makes you wonder what sort of journalist could fly into the uk carrying info that is being used to embarrass the state and not be searched. Don’t agree with but if you are going up against some of the worlds most powerful organisations you should not be so nieve as to think they will play be the rules, when the state breaking the rules is what you are reporting on. That Mench women was pointing this out correctly but from an angle that I don’t agree with.

Also claims from the Guardian editor that people from GCHQ were in his building breaking hard drives to deny access to the information, if that is true then we are in troubling times.

What makes that all the more laughable is that the Guardian are using an Amercan journalist publishing in US and Brazil to avoid the restrictions that our officials are trying to enforce. Someone needs reminding about King Canute (either version of the tale will do).

what if this bloke had been moving information that might have had an impact on your personal security? what if he’d had a list of names and addresses of people who have supported our security forces clandestinely.

he had a solicitor with him for 8.5 of the 9 hours i cant see much wrong with that. that Lucas woman was held for 6 hours without charge for simply peaceful protest (alegedly)

more here:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-08-19/uk-government-pulverizes-guardian-hard-disks-snowden-retaliation-says-theres-no-need

Its interesting reading this given the current laws they are pushing through in New Zealand (where im living) around the GCSB Bill allowing the government to spy of NZers. The prime minister seems to be trying to drum up fear in people that we are at risk of a terrorist attack. The ridiculous thing is that the country is too small and inconsequential a target for terrorists.

The ridiculous thing is that the country is too small and inconsequential a target for terrorists.

Tell that to Fernando Pereira.

The ridiculous thing is that the country is too small and inconsequential a target for terrorists.

French secret service excepted

more here:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-08-19/uk-government-pulverizes-guardian-hard-disks-snowden-retaliation-says-theres-no-need

twas quite good until it went all “Godwin”.

RT’s take on it… http://rt.com/news/guardian-hard-drives-destroyed-697/

It is happening here…

Its interesting reading this given the current laws they are pushing through in New Zealand (where im living) around the GCSB Bill allowing the government to spy of NZers. The prime minister seems to be trying to drum up fear in people that we are at risk of a terrorist attack. The ridiculous thing is that the country is too small and inconsequential a target for terrorists.

Which shows exactly how little you know about it. FWIW I work in security and intelligence and have done for 20 years both in the UK and NZ. Why are people surprised about something that has been going on forever whether you like or not ?

well at least they let him go alive
(the last time I recall the police stopping a Brazillian using draconian anti-terror laws they held him down, executed him and then colluded to lie about it afterwards)

I suppose its a risk that goes with the job- he was effectively a journalist on the guardians payroll- but its blatantly an abuse of the original law

deafening silence from the Limp Dems on this one too

if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to worry about.
if you tell the world about what we hide you and anyone you know should be very worried.

What he says

I’m surprised they’ve been so open in their misuse of the terrorism law.

Is that a deliberate? or just a bad decision?

One just hopes that the Grauniad were smart enough to arrange backups beyond UK jurisdiction.

if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to worry about.

FFS that is the most ridiculous statement you ever hear. If the government never ever abuse their power or make mistakes and miscarriages of “justice” never happen you might have a point. As he was not charged, he had done nothing, yet he was subjected to this. The case shoots your [ and i use it in the loosest possible sense of the word] argument in the foot

what if this bloke had been moving information that might have had an impact on your personal security?

What if he had a gun and was a baby eater? He was not and he was innocent of any terrorism offence hence the debate. Detaining a journalist under terrorism legislation is a tad draconian, would you not say, in a free world

what if he’d had a list of names and addresses of people who have supported our security forces clandestinely.

What on him that he forget tp store electronically in some way – what sort of shit spy is he meant to have been then?

he had a solicitor with him for 8.5 of the 9 hours i cant see much wrong with that.

The lack of charges perhaps? You know no cause etc

that Lucas woman was held for 6 hours without charge for simply peaceful protest

two wrong dont make a right

What if he had a gin and was a bay eater? He was not hence the debate.

Double gin and bay leaf ?

deafening silence from the Limp Dems on this one too

I assume they approve…

I edited it before I saw the comment as it was amongst my worst

One just hopes that the Grauniad were smart enough to arrange backups beyond UK jurisdiction.

Given they are the No #1 UK stop off for whistle blowers, I suspect they have a reasonably sophisticated system – probably not using the internet given that their fibre feed is probably routed directly to GCHQ…..

Which shows exactly how little you know about it. FWIW I work in security and intelligence and have done for 20 years both in the UK and NZ. Why are people surprised about something that has been going on forever whether you like or not ?

Now that it’s widely known about, they need to enshrine it in law
I’m sure pretty much anyone you asked would believe that there are other abuses of power that remain unexposed

If I were a whistleblower the gruniad would be well down on my list to leak to. As long as thirty years ago they cravenly gave in to govt pressure and handed back the papers that Sarah Tisdale had leaked to them. The identifying codes from those papers were used to convict and imprison Ms Tisdale. They could have shredded the files and burned the ashes, but they didn’t. For that reason, the paper has never recovered in my estimation.

My thought too, but I couldn’t remember her name. They showed a naive trust in the letter of the law back then, I wonder if they’ve grown up a bit.

Who else to turn to?

Most of the press would happily not just co-operate with the security forces without question, they would paint a pretty picture of how they had stood up against terrorism and helped jail dangerous threats to our well being.

There was interesting comment on Bruce Schneier’s blog at the weekend, on the customary squid post. Guido Fawkes has taken a view, could they come knocking at his door?