This piece of legislation was not a response to 9/11 – in fact the Terrorism Act 2000 came into force a full six months before 9/11 and had been scrutinized and passed by both Houses of Parliament before that. It replaced ‘temporary’ Prevention of Terrorism legislation that had been passed and annually renewed since 1989 in the context of the troubles in Northern Ireland. This in itself should serve as an object lesson in how the state gains and rarely gives up power over the people and the ease with which temporary measures become permanent fixtures over time.
