This morning the Independent has the story that the "Communications Data Bill" (= "your life in their computer, automatically" has been condemned by Lord Carlile, the Reviewer of Anti-Terrorist Laws:

Early plans to create a giant "Big Brother" database holding information about every phone call, email and internet visit made in the UK were last night condemned by the Government's own terrorism watchdog.

Lord Carlile of Berriew QC, the independent reviewer of anti-terrorist laws, said the "raw idea" of the database was "awful" and called for controls to stop government agencies using it to conduct fishing expeditions into the private lives of the public.

Let us also not forget that the Bill has previously been condemned by the Information Commissioner, another watchdog. This is from Hansard Dated 17 July 2008:

"Viscount Bridgeman (Conservative):

My Lords, in view of the concern expressed by the noble Baroness about privacy, will the Government withdraw their plans for a communications data Bill to set up a database logging every private phone call and e-mail? There has been enormous opposition to the idea, including that from the Information Commissioner."

At that time the Government said that it was too early to comment:

"Lord West of Spithead (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Security and Counter-terrorism), Home Office; Labour)

My Lords, the noble Viscount is referring to the IMP. It is very early days as to where we go on this and it relates to entirely new methods of how telecommunications firms will transmit and move data. It is also early days to see how this will impact on any aspects of intercept. We have come to no decisions on any of that. It is still being looked at. It is too early to make any statement."

This is what the Information Commissioner has said (Independent again, today):

"Richard Thomas, the Information Commissioner, has described the plans as "a step too far for the British way of life". Yesterday his office added: "It is clear that more needs to be done to protect people's personal information, but creating big databases... means you can never eliminate the risk that the data will fall into the wrong hands."

These people are supposed to protect us from the interfering state, but the bulldozer just keeps on coming regardless (again from the Independent today):

"Today the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, is expected to signal the Government's intention to press ahead with proposals to collect more details about people's phone, email and web-browsing habits as she warns that the terrorist threat to Britain is growing."

My Comments

  • Somehow by process or processes unknown this proposal moved from "too early to comment" to a set of pretty much concrete proposals in the space of not much more than a fortnight of Parliamentary sitting time with a 2 month break in the middle.

  • "Too early to comment". The BBC Pods and Blogs programme broadcast an interview with a Telecomms Engineer concerned that there were investigations into the feasibility of using "automatic" monitoring "probes" in the IT and Telecommunications infrastructure as far back as (I think) April; automatic monitoring is the key issue since it removes the need for case-by-case authorisation and facilitates "fishing expeditions".

  • Last time round, the consultation turned into a non-consultation when one of the key proposals "under consultation" was implemented before the non-consultation consultation had even finished. Spy Blog says it could happen again.

  • We can swat 42 days after heaven knows how much resolute campaigning, but the thing we really need is to pull this surveillance culture out by the roots like a rotten tooth which has started giving the whole system blood poisioning.