Politics

[altariel]

Blimey, David Davis has resigned to force a by-election over the issue of the 42-day six week detention limit.

Hey, but at least we are all SO MUCH SAFER now!

Comments

[communicator.livejournal.com]

The shrewd counter-move for Labour, speaking purely from a position of political strategy, would be to dismiss it as a stunt, say that he's demeaning/trivialising the electoral process, and refuse to put up a candidate.

I imagine his motives are internal party politics, but the banner he has chosen to make a stand under is a liegitimate one.

[kalypso-v.livejournal.com]

I think it's quite possibly both; even Tories can take a principled stand, and if that happens to advance his own position, win-win. Which is why I'm aghast, because I regard Cameron as the lesser of two people-I-really-don't-want-in-No.-10.

And yes, I'd just about come round to "don't fight the by-election" myself. I fear they won't have the nerve.

[iainjcoleman.livejournal.com]

But can Brown really afford to bottle another election? I don't think Labour have any good options here.

[kalypso-v.livejournal.com]

I just faxed Downing Street to tell him, anyway. Wonder if I'll get a 6 a.m. phone call.

[iainjcoleman.livejournal.com]

If the only people to stand in favour of 42 days at this by-election are the BNP, how will that make the Goverment look?

[iainjcoleman.livejournal.com]

Actually, belay that last comment. It turns out the BNP opposes 42 days too.

[julesjones]

They were already doing that an hour or so after the speech, or at least one MP was doing so in a manner that suggested to me it was a put-up job.

I think his motive is at least partly genuine principle-of-the-thing - I get the impression this is an issue he feels strongly about, and there's a significant chunk of the Tory electorate who will be all for banging up those dirty terrorists without trial, the innocent have nothing to fear, yadda yadda.