Theresa May vows to rip up human rights laws in fight against terrorism

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Theresa May has declared that she will tear up some human rights laws as she ramped up her rhetoric in the fight against terrorism.

The Prime Minister said she was looking at how to do make it easier to “deport foreign terrorist suspects back to their own countries”, adding that is if she is re-elected on Thursday “we will change laws so we can do it”.

She made the comments, which came after seven people were killed and dozens injured in a horrific terrorist attack in London Bridge, in one of her last speeches before the General Election campaign draws to a close,

Mrs May’s stance was criticised by her rivals, who said the issue was one of resources and once again pointed to cuts to police numbers during Mrs May’s time as Home Secretary from 2010 to 2016.

Speaking to supporters in Tory target seat Slough on Tuesday evening, Mrs May said: "As we see the threat changing, evolving becoming a more complex threat, we need to make sure that our police and security and intelligence agencies have the powers they need.

"I mean longer prison sentences for people convicted of terrorist offences. I mean making it easier for the authorities to deport foreign terrorist suspects back to their own countries.

"And I mean doing more to restrict the freedom and the movements of terrorist suspects when we have enough evidence to know they are a threat, but not enough evidence to prosecute them in full in court.

"And if our human rights laws stop us from doing it, we will change the laws so we can do it.

"If I am elected as Prime Minister on Thursday, that work begins on Friday."

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The Conservative manifesto says the party will not repeal the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) while Brexit is under way but will "consider our human rights legal framework when the process of leaving the EU concludes".

Mrs May added that she expects police and security services to launch a review after Saturday's terrorist attack.

Security services have come under pressure after it emerged one of the attackers, Khuram Butt, 27, had been reported to the anti-terror hotline in 2015.

She told Sky News: "MI5 and the police have already said they would be reviewing how they dealt with Manchester and I would expect them to do exactly the same in relation to London Bridge.

"What Government needs to do is, and what the Government that comes in after Thursday's election needs to be willing to do, is to give more powers to the police and security service when they need them, needs to deal with this issue of terrorism and extremism online and also needs to be able to call out extremism here in the United Kingdom."

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the party "don't believe would-be terrorists and suicide bombers will be deterred by longer sentences or restricting our rights at home."

He added that “right response” to the recent attacks was to "halt the Conservative cuts and invest in our police and security services and protect our democratic values, including the Human Rights Act."

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron accused the Prime Minister of launching a "nuclear arms race" in terror laws which would reduce freedom, not terrorism.

He said: "Theresa May is simply posturing about being tough on terror as she panics that her abysmal record is coming under scrutiny.

"In her years as home secretary she was willing to offer up the police for cut after cut.

"We have been here before - a kind of nuclear arms race in terror laws.

"It might give the appearance of action, but what the security services lack is not more power, but more resources.”

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