Terrorism Act 2006 (Disapplication of Section 25) Order 2008

My Lords, perhaps I may respond to my noble friend in writing on that point because I am not sure of the exact position. My noble friend Lord Harris was absolutely right to make the point that this should be used sparingly. I have talked about the cyclical nature of the threat in the sense that if you manage to unwind a complicated plot, it takes time for these things to be built up again through links. However, I have to be careful of what I say in order not to tread in sensitive areas. My noble friend also made the interesting point about the alleged self-starters, one in Bristol and another in Exeter. If this is a variation on terrorist tactics, it means that the issue will have to be looked at in a different way. Some interesting issues have to be teased out in this area. Overall, it is clear that this House understands what kind of threat we face, and that it is very different from that posed by the IRA. This is a threat to our way of life made by people who do not mind dying themselves and who wish to cause mass innocent casualties. That is a very different thing and has to be taken extremely seriously. As I said, I know that we hold different views about exactly how it should be done, but we share the belief that in the final analysis we have to protect and look after our people. I thank all noble Lords for their contributions. On Question, Motion agreed to.