Blair to sacrifice crime bills
2005-04-03 11:44
London - The British government plans to drop plans to introduce ID cards and a ban on incitement to religious hatred in order to push other legislation through parliament before it is dissolved for elections, a newspaper reported Sunday.
The cabinet will instead put the economy on the front burner, starting with a commitment from finance minister Gordon Brown to raise education spending for every year of the next parliament, The Observer said.
Controversial plans to introduce identity cards, as part of efforts to fight terrorism, and new laws on making incitement to religious hatred a criminal offence had been two central planks of the government's crime legislation.
ID cards are commonplace in most European countries, but they have never been permanently introduced in Britain, where many citizens fear they would compromise their civil rights.
The Conservative Party had supported the plan.
The Observer said Blair will also move to neutralise a key obstacle to his re-election by acknowledging deep divisions within the party over Iraq during the campaign.
Anti-war celebrities and members of parliament are expected to share party platforms to persuade voters that anger over the decision to join the US-led invasion of Iraq is not a reason to defect, it said.
They argue it would be worse to have Conservative leader Michael Howard in power, citing his "regressive attitude to social issues," it added.
- AFP