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Brown criticised in bugging row

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Published Date: 04 February 2008
By BILL JACOBS
GORDON Brown was warned that an MP had been bugged but did nothing about it, shadow home secretary David Davis claimed yesterday.
Mr Davis said he wrote to the Prime Minister to tell him of a suspected breach of the rules which ban police and security services bugging MPs.

It was alleged that Labour MP Sadiq Khan had his conversations bugged twice while meeting a constituent
in a prison.

Downing Street later denied that the Prime Minister had received the letter from Mr Davis warning him an MP had been bugged.

Number 10 said it could find no details of the letter and consequently the Prime Minister "knows nothing" about it. Jack Straw, the UK Justice Secretary, has launched an internal inquiry into the claims.

Mr Davis said he wrote to the Prime Minister about his concerns in December last year. He said he did not name Mr Khan in his letter to protect his source, but told the Prime Minister he had "reason to believe" an MP had been bugged.

Mr Davis said he asked Mr Brown "to look into it, but I haven't heard a word since".

It was reported yesterday Scotland Yard's anti-terrorist squad bugged conversations between Mr Khan and Babar Ahmad at Woodhill prison in Milton Keynes.

Mr Ahmad is in detention awaiting deportation to the US. He is a childhood friend of Mr Khan, 37, the MP for Tooting, London, and a government whip.

Mr Khan said: "Clearly I'm concerned. That's why I'm pleased Jack Straw, as soon as he heard about these allegations yesterday, has ordered an inquiry."



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1

tom 54,

u.s.a. 04/02/2008 00:42:44
while I believe that counsel and client should have a
certain amount of privacy, security of the homeland
should come first. if a consult between counsel needs
to be kept totally confidential, then information that
would be injurious to the kingdom shouldn't be discus -
sed if one or both parties thought their conversation
would be monitored. By being open in their conversation, the parties would have nothing to fear
because nothing was discussed that would embarass either parties...
2

,

04/02/2008 00:47:15
Comment Removed By Administrator
Reason:
3

Teofilio Cubillas,

Lima, Peru 04/02/2008 00:48:40
What's all this nonsense about the police and security services not being allowed to bug MP's? Are we seriously being asked to believe that Bobby Sands, Gerry Adams and Martin McGuiness were never bugged? Of course they were, and quite rightly so, because at the very least, they consorted with terrorists. Which is exactly what Mr Khan appears to have done. I suppose Sands, Adams and McGuiness weren't members of the Labour Party though.
4

Roberta Burns,

04/02/2008 01:07:07
Why was an MP visiting a prisoner in the first place.
MPs are not allowed to get involved in the legal process.

And, if he was visiting as a friend, then an MP was not being bugged, as such.
5

Senga Jean,

04/02/2008 01:24:52
Gordon Brown is not a BUGG,ER. END OFF.
6

Guga II,

Rockall 04/02/2008 03:57:38
Shades of the Wilson era.
7

Boy Wonder,

04/02/2008 07:43:33
He bugs me ... does that count??
8

steve 1511,

aberdeen 04/02/2008 07:45:25
m p voted for hundreds of organisations to be allowed to bug joe public,why do they want to be treated diferently from us now that we know there is massive corruption amongst m p the police mi5 etc must be given more powers to deal with this corruption
9

Unimpressed one,

04/02/2008 08:21:21
Oh for Christ's sake, the guy he was speaking to was a terrorist suspect! Fair game for bugging I'd have thought. PC madness again.
10

Proximaking,

Dundee 04/02/2008 09:17:56
I'd be horrified if they DIDN'T bug EVERYONE occasionally. What's the big deal? If you consort with known terrorist suspects what on earth do you expect? If these people weren't moslems no-one would bat an eyelid. Why is it that muslims who refuse to fight for the freedoms that they enjoy in this country seem to think they enjoy better protection from this country than people who were born here and whose family members died for the very freedoms that most young muslims would be happy to abuse? Remember over 50% of young muslims when questioned say they are happy to see British service men and women killed. These people shouldn't be in this country and they wouldn't be if a democratic vote was taken. If we want to get democracy into Pakistan and the rest of the world we couldn't do better than to send every muslim packing back home and let them change those countries into something resembling this one rather than being here and trying to change this country into those failed ones, .... the ones they couldn't wait to leave.
11

yockel,

04/02/2008 09:48:15
Khan supported ID cards. Scrutiny and control for the unwashed, secrecy and protection for Nublab!
12

yockel,

04/02/2008 12:11:04
Reported elsewhere - "Khan went on TV to try to reassure fellow Muslims, stressing it was not certain he had been bugged and he was "pleased" at the speed with which Mr Straw had acted."
Publicity stunt!!!!
13

Jock MacTamson 2,

Highlands 04/02/2008 13:02:56
How many MP's have friends who are suspected terrorists ? The MP was not bugged he just went into a prison cell housing an electronic listening device ?
You can be damn sure the CIA would have the cell bugged anyway.

I was shocked to hear the Muslim Council released the usual statement about mistrust of the police by muslims. How terrible the police are to listen in on the conversations of a suspected Terrorist. Do they prefer the way they do it back home in Pakistan. Just strap on the electrodes to the family jewels and await a confession.
14

Media 1,

cape town 04/02/2008 20:38:49
The suspect is wanted in America for Taliban fund raising! He is not wanted in Britain for anything! He could be guilty of rasing funds for terrorists, just as British tax payers are guilty of supporting our own government terrorists. But at the end of the day our loyalties lie with Britain and Britains safety, and this MP should not have been visiting this person until he was cleared of all wrongdoing! So I can understand the need to bug him! Imagine they did not bug him and something terrible happened.What then?

 

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