LAWFUEL – The Law Newswire – Home Secretary John Reid has warned that human rights laws must be re-written to protect the public against terrorism, ITV reports.
In a controversial speech, he described the current legal set-up as “unacceptable” and said politicians who followed case law “to the letter” were failing to protect their citizens.
He insisted the international legal landscape required modernising, while still safeguarding human rights.
Speaking at a conference of interior and home affairs ministers from the six largest European Union countries, Mr Reid said legislation which distinguishes between armed conflict and criminal acts was effectively out of date.
He told the G6 summit in Venice: “We need to work to modernise the law – still protecting human rights and still providing equity and justice – but reflecting the reality of the conflicts and struggles we now face,” .
“We need leadership to do this. It can’t be left solely to the lawyers. Politicians must expose these issues and set a lead, so that we can protect the rights of all our citizens, including all those threatened by terrorism.”
