Call me paranoid, but I'd be wary of Jack's charms

Sketch

IT'S THE charming ones we have to watch. Jack Straw has apleasantly partisan way with the House, but he has depths - andmaybe we wouldn't want to wade out too deeply.

Talking to one of his admirers, I received a list ofwhistleblowers who had been caught and prosecuted, while withinreach of friend Jack. That struck a cautionary note.

A further casualty is this Bill of his providing for inquests tobe held in secret. But why not?

A thought experiment. Imagine a series of judgments fromOxfordshire coroners on the deaths of servicemen in Iraq andAfghanistan: "These, well-equipped, well-supplied, well-armed, fullyarmoured, totally supported soldiers were victims of suicidalterrorists despite everything that a high-spending government andits wise, far-sighted ministers could do. And they should stopcomplaining because they have more helicopters than any modernsoldier could possibly need."

If that had been the tenor of the verdicts, this Straw clausewouldn't be in the Bill - the ability to hold inquests in secret,and without juries. The last I heard, they could dismiss a coronermid-inquest, if they wanted.

It's a big step - a rapid shuffle forward in the Grandmother'sFootsteps they've been playing for years.

Paul Farrelly asked how secret hearings would help get at thetruth. James Gray wanted families to be represented by barristers toeven out the odds. Jeremy Corbyn wanted legal aid for families. Butit was Chris Mullin who made the point with which all us paranoidshastily agree.

Had it been possible to hold inquests in secret, would theMenezes case have been held in public? After the innocent Brazilianhad been shot dead, the Commissioner immediately wrote to the HomeSecretary asking that no inquiry be held. Won't that happen, nowthat it can happen?

"I don't deny the temptation," Jack said. The temptations arelegion.

The Bill also provides for very wide data-sharing powers. Itallows the state to share any data with anyone in any country "infurtherance of any government policy", the plaiting together ofdozens of data streams so all sorts of state employees, down tominor officials, can form detailed portraits of individual citizens.

If they do get their ID cards happening, it will be the work ofmoments to plug that into the system and with one swipe reveal toofficial eyes your internet porn visits, the mismatch between yourVAT return and your income tax, your prostate test results, yourdrinking habits, your speeding tickets ... and correlate it withyour children's health and exam results.

Please help spread the paranoia.

sketch@simoncarr.sc