Police arrest critic of the Home Secretary

[Bubble99]

What's that all about, then?

I would have said that's a bit extreme until this happened (although we need to be constantly alert - complacency is how these things happen). Met clearly need to be reined in and reminded THEY are not above the law.

Don't know what I find more disturbing - that an MP has been arrested and had his office raided under anti-terror legislation or that this has attracted less interest than one on whether or not a chef has shagged someone other than his wife

Daisy sadly such is the state of politics today, and the (not unreasonable) belief that we have so little influence on our elected representatives.

I can see why people wouldn't feel involved Labour has distanced itself further and further from any accountability.

Daisy - it is the old bread and circuses thing again...

It has now emerged that

Gordon Brown has in the past admitted to "Procuring Misconduct in Public Office"

Shouldn't he be arrested under the anti-terror legislation???

edam - JS = Jackie Smith, the Home Secretary...

doh! (Couldn't help thinking of John Sergeant )

Heard some appalling copper on PM trying to defend it as 'MPs are not above the law'. Lying toad. He must know that actually MPs are protected by parliamentary privilege precisely to stop the state interfering in their right to represent their constituents.

This is NOT Neil Hamilton taking cash in brown envelopes, FFS.

Love the clip of Brown admitting to obtaining leaked info via a civil servant - of course, it's one law for you when you are in power...

Oh, this keeps getting worse and worse. now the Commons authorities are trying to stitch things up

Bloody hell, they are getting their stories straight. Labour have completely lost their moral compass.

They can't be allowed to get way with this, surely?

Nick Robinson on the Beeb called the memo another leak so let's hope not everyone who passes on info has been scared off!

And since it has been leaked and Cameron knows about it hopefully they won't be able to get away with it. Appalling attempt to stitch up the Tories. How DARE they even think about having a meeting without the Opposition? I am not a Tory voter but blimey, am outraged by this continued assault on democracy.

Ten O'Clock News also pointed out none of the stuff Galley leaked was serious enough to provoke an investigation under the Official Secrets Act. So why the hell were the cops called in?

It's all obfuscation in the media - the pseudo debate about whether Labour did it years ago, the comments by JS about 'police independence' the police making comments about politicians 'not being above the law' (as if it's for them to decide ffs) - what is happening is that Government is being allowed to demolish Parliamentarianism. Parliamentarianism is what makes our democracy happen. Anyone can have a Government, ask the people of Zimbabwe. The ability to separate judicial, executive and so on is what we have instead of the US checks and balances, it's what we have instead of a written constitution and it's what is being steadily dismantled so that the only thing that happens is what the govt. in power wants to happen, whether they're left or right really doesn't matter to me anymore. My vote at the next election will be based purely on civil liberties/freedom stuff.

Well, if we want democracy, looks as if we are going to have to get rid of the rot right at the top of the police as well as the government.

The President of the Association of Chief Police Officers, Ken Jones, issued this statement:

"ACPO has shared the concerns of the Permanent Secretary (of the Home Office) regarding leaks from his department. The Metropolitan Police Service was properly asked to assist... The independence of UK law enforcement from undue influence and pressure is the jewel in the crown in our system of criminal justice. We should protect that principle, even when inconvenient, as it occasionally is. If an investigation reveals that any person may be involved in wrongdoing then they have the right to expect that we will investigate the matter in ways which seek to get at the truth and either sustain the allegation or exonerate them. No one can be above the law."

WTF business is it of ACPO's to interfere in democracy? WTF business is it of theirs if the govt. is embarrassed? Clearly no official secrets involved here.

So much for independence. Clearly our top copper thinks his job is to break the law in order to cover up Jackie Smith's blushes.

The Tories used to resign over things like this

This lot seem to think that we're all too anaesthetised with reality TV to notice...

To be fair, Bubble, I'm struggling to think of any comparable Tory resignations. They prosecuted Sarah Tisdall and Clive Ponting.

But they didn't send the cops into Parliament. No-one's done that since Charles I.

Jonathan Aitken.

Simple sword of thruth and all that.Can't remember what he did now...

What was he imprisoned for? This is bugging me now..

I think Jonathan Aitken was imprisoned for lying under oath (perjury) whilst sueing a newspaper over reports that he received bribes.

ROFL at idea that Aitken resigned with honour! He perjured himself and his wife and daughter and sued the Guardian for libel rather than admit he'd been caught out. Could easily have bankrupted the paper and scared any others off investigating sordid, corrupt politicians. He was among the worst of the lying scumbags in that group of Tories. Which is a badge of fame given the company of Neil Hamilton, Archer et al.

Issue now is different - it's about tearing down the constitution and the state using the cops to harass MPs going about their legitimate business of holding the executive to account. The Tory liars were bad enough but this is 10x worse.

Archer, of course, did get away with perjury for many years. Remember the judge telling the jurors his wife was so 'fragrant' he couldn't have possibly slept with a prostitute?

Well, yes. Not a good example.

I'm sure politicians of any colour used to resign, though.

I agree that this is 10x worse. If they are prepared to do this to try and stop leaks of merely embarrassing info it makes the murder theories wrt David Kelly seem more and more plausible.

Interesting that Gordon Brown seems to have done a disappearing act recently. I'm wondering if this will turn into a Watergate/impeachment type incident. He's such a paranoid control freak, I'd be amazed if he knew nothing about it.