Counter-Terrorism Bill

And the Americans take the view that they need 48 hours to deal with that, not 28 days—let us be clear about that. I believe that the Minister meant attacks three times as large as 9/11, but let us move on. Even in those circumstances, we could be in a position to trigger the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, which allows detention for a maximum of 58 days. I remind hon. Members that we are not proposing an alternative, but saying that the Government already have the requisite powers. We do not say that we believe that such matters will arise and that the Government should therefore put the measure in place. If they believe that such events might happen, they already have the power to deal with them and they do not need others. They have not understood that straightforward case. The Civil Contingencies Act is rightly capable of being challenged and overruled by judicial review if the emergency does not exist. That provision is rightly subject to approval in the House as soon as possible, but within a maximum of seven days. It is rightly available only in a case of genuine emergency. The Home Secretary tried to intimate that, without actually saying it, throughout her speech. Before the Government say that the Civil Contingencies Act will not work, we have a formal legal opinion from the Government's lawyer of choice, David Pannick QC. He says, in terms, that it will.