Terrorist Asset-Freezing etc. Bill [Lords]

I beg to move, That the Bill be now read the Third time. I start by thanking right hon. and hon. Members from all parts of the House for their participation on Second Reading, in Committee and now on Report, and for helping the Bill reach this stage. It has been given careful scrutiny, even though it has not been the most lengthy scrutiny process. The issues have been dealt with thoroughly both in Committee and on the Floor of the House. We have considered very closely the civil liberties issues that have been raised in our debates and how best to address them without compromising national security. I am confident that the Bill strikes the right balance between protecting national security and protecting civil liberties, but it is right that we have considered carefully both in Committee and on Report amendments that would strike a different balance. I am grateful for the Opposition's constructive approach. The Bill's genesis was legislation that they developed in the previous Parliament. We have taken that legislation forward and, I think, improved it by introducing additional safeguards to protect fundamental freedoms. The Opposition could have extended the debate on these changes, had they so wished, but they did not do so. I recognise that the right hon. Member for Delyn (Mr Hanson) brought his experience to our debates. That helped to enlighten the scrutiny process. It is right that where there is agreement between Government and Opposition, we should make it clear that that is the case and co-operate in the national interest, in the same way as, when we were in opposition and faced with the Supreme Court judgment that triggered the Bill, we worked with the then Government to ensure that the temporary legislation reached the statute book quickly to maintain the security of our nation. I think that we all recognise that the Bill is necessary to the United Kingdom's continued national security. We have seen again with the events in Sweden at the weekend the threat posed by international terrorism. The Government must have the right tools to combat terrorism in the UK and overseas, and among those tools must be options to act preventively and to be able to disrupt terrorist plots in their planning stages. It is worth bearing in mind that the Bill covers assets in the UK but might relate to parties overseas. The most recent set of figures that I have shows that of the 57 freezing cases covered by this Bill, 25 of those involved are resident in the UK and the remainder are resident overseas. The most durable freezing orders are those that relate to people outside the UK. Of the 46 cases that are more than four years old, 31 relate to cases outside the UK. It is important to bear in mind that we must have the tools to combat terrorism wherever it happens. One of the most effective ways of limiting terrorists' actions is to limit their ability to finance attacks, maintain their infrastructure, provide training, equipment and recruitment, and promote their message of hate. The UK's terrorist asset-freezing regime is an important and valuable tool. That is why there was cross-party support for the emergency legislation earlier this year and why I hope the House will unite behind the legislation today. Let me reiterate some of the changes that have been made to make the Bill stronger and better. The Bill introduced in the other place was a significant improvement on the current regime. It included more targeted prohibitions to limit the impact of asset freezing on innocent third parties; a provision to ensure that, in accordance with a ruling in the European Court of Justice, the regime did not catch the payment of state benefits to the spouses or partners of designated persons and so did not have the draconian impact on family life that the Supreme Court was concerned about; and the establishment of an independent reviewer—something we talked about today and in Committee—to ensure that there is proper independent scrutiny of the asset-freezing regime. Further safeguards were introduced by Members in the other place to raise the legal test for freezing assets for more than 30 days from reasonable suspicion to reasonable belief and to strengthen judicial oversight by ensuring that there is a full merits-based review of designation decisions. Combined, those important new safeguards will serve to make the asset-freezing regime significantly more proportionate and more transparent in its application, in addition to raising the legal threshold that must be met for a freeze to be imposed. However, I also believe that they are changes that will not undermine the effectiveness of the regime or risk the UK's continued compliance with international best practice. I welcome the endorsement that many Members have given the changes, both in this House and the other place. In summary, I believe that the Bill we are considering for the final time today strikes the right balance between protecting public safety and protecting civil liberties, and that the balance we have struck commands widespread and cross-party consensus in Parliament. The Bill will put the UK's terrorist asset-freezing regime on a secure legislative footing and significantly improve it. We have made excellent progress against a tight deadline, and I am pleased to be able to commend the Bill to the House.