London: Britain on Tuesday overturned unpopular curbs on personal freedoms imposed in the wake of the September 11 attacks but stopped short of scrapping a contentious programme that detains suspected terrorists without trial.
Home Secretary Theresa May announced the results of a six-month review into Britain's tough anti-terrorism laws and acknowledged some powers had been "out of step with other Western democracies."
Britain's anti-terrorism policies have long been considered one of the toughest among Western democracies, allowing police to hold suspected terrorists for up to 28 days before they must be charged or released. In contrast, US authorities have only seven days and French police only six.
May imposed strict new curbs on the powers of police to detain those arrested over plots before they must be charged or freed, and has limited the ability of officers to conduct random searches of the public. British police will now
have only 14 days to hold terror suspects.
Local authorities will also no longer be allowed to use snooping techniques intended to trap terrorists to pry on citizens suspected of littering or allowing their pets to foul sidewalks.
"For too long, the balance between security and British freedoms has not been the right one," May said in a statement.
However, May said the Conservative-led coalition government would be able to reintroduce a more stringent regime on short notice if there were fears of an imminent attack, or to handle a major terror plot.
Civil liberties advocates also complained that the most contentious counter-terrorism power - a house arrest-style programme known as control orders - had escaped serious reform.
Eight people are currently being held under control orders, which can impose a curfew of up to 16 hours per day, require a suspect to wear an electronic anklet, curtail their contact with others and ban an individual from using the Internet or travelling overseas.
The restrictions are used to handle suspects deemed a risk to national security, but who aren't accused of any specific crime and can't be deported because European law won't allow them to be sent to countries where they face
possible torture.
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