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HOWARD'S WAY.... a weekly column from Michael Howard MP

28 September 2006

 

I hate to say I told you so. But it’s a thought that has been running through my mind increasingly often during the last few weeks. It’s less that 17 months since the general election but, across the board, the policies which I advocated are now conceded, by the present Government, to have been the right ones.

The latest example is the question of whether evidence of intercept telephone conversations between those accused of serious criminal offences – including terrorism – should be allowed to be used in evidence at their trial. In most other countries it can be. Here it can’t. If it could be much of the heated controversy about control orders could be avoided.

Long before the last election I submitted a detailed plan which would make it possible to use this evidence. The Government rejected it. Now the Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, says he has become convinced that this evidence should be used.

There are many other examples.

We said there should be an overall limit on immigration and criticised the Government for not following the example of France, Italy and Germany in imposing transitional controls on immigration for the new member states of the European Union. Now, after admitting that they grossly underestimated the number of those who would come here from those countries, the Government says that it “probably” will impose controls on immigration from Bulgaria and Romania.

We said we would provide 20,000 extra prison places. Now, belatedly, John Reid says he will build 8,000 new places.

We said we would massively expand drug rehabilitation programmes and provide 25,000 residential rehab places. Now Tony Blair says we may need “expansion in capacity of residential rehabilitation and secure drug-treatment units’.

I could go on and on. But I’m sure you get my drift. Being proved right after the event is not a lot of consolation. But it does bring a modest degree of satisfaction. So I hate to say it but, yes, I told you so!