England To Muzzle Radical Clerics?

Leaders of the three major British parties are meeting to draft new anti-terror legislation, which will be considered in October. According to the Mirror:

The Tories and Liberal Democrats back the creation of three new offences which would ban inciting terrorism, preparing an attack and giving or receiving terror training.

Other measures being considered include increasing the time terror suspects can be held without charge and increasing the use of phone taps and other intercept evidence in court.

Getting into the mosques and rooting out the fomenters of terror is such an obvious first protective step here and abroad. Who's going to introduce our bill and when?

Yesterday's provocative three hours of exchanges on Hugh Hewitt's show plays up the importance of such legislation, as it was revealed that as many of 80 perent of US mosques have been overtaken, to at least some degree, by radical Wahhabism.

The Mirror article also carried Blair's outstanding quote from yesterday. Here it is:

"Obviously these are difficult times and London is being tested but standing firm.

"The calm resolve of Londoners is remarked upon time and time again and rightly.

"And I would like to place on record again my thanks to the police and emergency services, the security services and those working on London's tubes and buses for all the work they are doing in unique and challenging circumstances. They have our full support."

And he rejected suggestions he had tried to claim the bombings in London had "nothing to do with Iraq" but said the terrorists' claim the war was their reason for the bombings was a completely false one.

"Let us expose the obscenity of these people saying it is concern for Iraq that drives them to terrorism,” Mr Blair said.

"If it is concern for Iraq then why are they driving a car bomb into the middle of a group of children and killing them?

"Why are they every day in Iraq trying to kill people whose only desire is for their country to become a democracy?

"They will always have a reason and I am not saying any of these things don't affect their warped reasoning and warped logic as to what they do or that they don't use these things to try and recruit people.

"But I do say we shouldn't compromise with it. I'm not saying anyone says any of these things justify it but we shouldn't even allow them the vestige of an excuse for what they do."

Mr Blair rejected suggestions that the bombings should spell the end for faith schools saying ending Muslim schools would also mean ending Catholic, Protestant and Jewish schools.

He said: "It is perfectly consistent with a society being integrated and us being a multi-cultural, multiracial and multi-religious society for people to desire to have their children educated with the values of their own faith. There is nothing wrong in that at all."