90-day terror motion defeated

Tony Blair's 90-day detention plan has been defeated in Parliament in a tense vote, the Prime Minister's first Commons defeat. The Prime Minister said: 'I think it was the wrong decision and I just hope in a later time we don't rue it.' The government lost the motion by 322 to 291 votes, a margin of 31. Parliament did pass the 28-day amendment by 323 to 290 votes, a margin of 33, which meant the Prime Minister's fall back position of 60 days is also off the table. Conservative Party leader Michael Howard called for Mr Blair's resignation in the wake of the defeat. MPs were called in from all over the world for the crunch vote on what became the Prime Minister's personal crusade. The result is a huge blow for Tony Blair who staked his reputation on the clause in the terror bill despite protests from his own backbenchers, who said the length of detention was too long. He said: 'I think people in the country will find it very odd that MPs, given such a strong and compelling case by the police, decided to ignore their recommendation and to go for a period they thought of themselves without any justification for it. 'I really do think people in the country will find it a strange decision.' Earlier, Chancellor Gordon Brown was rushed home from Israel to back the Prime Minister in the crucial vote. Foreign Secretary Jack Straw was also recalled from his trip to Russia. Tony Blair used Prime Minister's Questions to hammer home the case for the Government proposals, in a final attempt to fight off a reverse that would be seen as a major blow to his authority. A tense-looking Mr Blair was in the chamber to hear the result of the vote, shaking his head as the numbers were revealed. The scale of this evening's defeat was a shock for Government Whips with a reported 41 Labour MPs joining Liberal Democrats, nationalists and most Tories to overturn Mr Blair's 66-strong majority. Following the vote, Scottish Nationalist Party leader Alex Salmond said: 'The Prime Minister has just fallen off the high wire.' During stormy exchanges at Prime Minister's Questions earlier today, Mr Blair urged MPs of all parties to be 'responsible' in backing the measures put forward by police. He told them: 'We are not living in a police state, but we are living in a country that faces a real and serious threat of terrorism - terrorism that wants to destroy our way of life, terrorism that wants to inflict casualties on us without limit. 'When those charged with protecting our country provide, as they have, a compelling case for action, I know what my duty is. 'My duty is to support them, and so is the duty - in my view - of every member of this House.' But Conservative leader Michael Howard insisted that police had failed to make a case for 90 days' detention, which he warned could alienate Britain's Muslim communities. As the Government desperately battled to win over wavering backbenchers, Chancellor Gordon Brown and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw were ordered to cut short high-profile trips overseas in order to boost numbers going through the Aye lobby. Party chairman Ian McCartney attended Parliament for the first time since having heart surgery in order to vote.

ITN | November 9, 2005

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