THE security minister Lord West of Spithead was last night accused of being "reckless in the extreme" after claiming the authorities were monitoring "another great plot" by terrorists.
The Conservatives warned his comments, the day after the government was forced to abandon its plans to detain terror suspects for up to 42 days without charge, could jeopardise public safety while undermining any police investigation.
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ppeared to be surprise in Whitehall at his remarks, with neither the Home Office nor the Metropolitan Police – which leads nationally on terrorism issues – prepared to confirm his statement.
It raised the prospect that the former head of the Royal Navy – who has a reputation for unguarded remarks – had once again spoken out of turn.
MP Patrick Mercer, a Conservative member of the Commons home affairs committee, said the minister should "reflect very carefully" on what he had said.
"This is an extremely important post," he said. "I hope that Lord West has time to reflect on his comments and to decide whether they were sensible or not."
A Home Office spokesman last night said: "We have always been clear – as has the director general of the security service (MI5] – that there are many plots, individuals and groups under investigation. We don't elaborate on specific plots or individuals."
Lord West's comments came during a statement in the House of Lords on Monday night's defeat by peers of provisions in the Counter Terrorism Bill to extend pre-charge detention to 42 days.
"The threat is huge. It dipped slightly and is now rising again … There are large complex plots. We unravelled one, which caused damage to al-Qaeda, and the plots faded slightly," he said.
"However, another great plot is building up again, which we are monitoring."
Dominic Grieve, the shadow home secretary, said: "These comments are reckless in the extreme. We are told the police have to strike a balance between early arrest during a developing terrorist conspiracy in order to protect the public, and waiting long enough to ensure there is enough evidence to secure a conviction.
"The minister's comments give us the worst of all worlds – cutting across both objectives."
The Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, Chris Huhne, said Lord West's comments risked "blowing the cover" of a police counter-terrorist investigation. "Lord West needs to tame his tongue," he said.
Lord West has previously found himself at the centre of controversy after he suggested the case for 42-day pre-charge detention had not been made.
He subsequently acknowledged that he had spoken out of turn, saying that he was just a "simple sailor".
The full article contains 442 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
