Liberal Democrats challenge Brown to retract detention comments

12.00.00am GMT Fri 21st Mar 2008

The Liberal Democrats have formally asked Prime Minister Gordon Brown to retract his comments suggesting that Liberty and the Liberal Democrats supported an extension of the period of detention without trial beyond 28 days.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, Liberal Democrat Shadow Home Secretary, Chris Huhne said that there was no evidence for the Prime Minister's claim in the House that: 'As for what he (Nick Clegg) says about the powers of detention, he - and even the Conservative Party - has supported the Liberty proposals that say there may be circumstances in which more than 28 days is necessary for arresting and interviewing someone before charge.'

Liberty's Director Shami Chakrabarti made clear in a statement on 20th March that this confuses Liberty's position, which is to oppose an extension of the period of detention without charge.

Mr Huhne also said that Mr Brown had no evidence for his assertion that the Liberal Democrats had supported such a proposal.

Commenting, Mr Huhne said:

"The Government is clearly becoming ever more desperate that it will lose the vote in the House, if they are already woefully misrepresenting the views of their opponents on this issue."