The supporters do not understand the balances necessary to support this measure. An accused needs to have immense legal support immediately, free of charge. Say two senior QCs fully funded by the state. A single citizen faced with the possibility of continuous questioning for SIX weeks is lost!

David, Belfast, UK

Brown and his bankrupt brainless government bother me much more than terrorists do. Since 1997 we have had to endure the worst government in living memory. If the half wit Blair had not taken us to war we would not be having this discussion. Surely we currently have enough laws to cover terrorism.

Ian Fairclough, Knebworth, UK

The security of our nation is paramount and Brown is on the right path on this and deserves wholehearted support. Lily llivered opponents risk a potential disaster and remember there will be built in safeguards to use the powers only if required.

Margaret, Kent,

Thanks for the insult Rae. What arrogance to label many such as myself as not decent as i don't support Brown. many experts disagree with the need for 42 days. No other democratic country has found the need for it. How many cases are ther so far that 28 days in insufficent. None.

John, Backonplanetearth,

This government is a much bigger danger to our society, our freedoms and security, than terrorists are. They keep bringing in other intrusive laws that have no place in a free society. They even want to protect cartoon characters from child abuse! Seriously, this government's out of control.

Simon, Brentwood, UK

"To cast a man into prison without formulating any charge known to the law, and particularly to deny him the judgment of his peers, is in the highest degree odious and is the foundation of all totalitarian government whether Nazi or Communist." Winston Churchill, 1943.

Antipholus Papps, London, UK

He wants 42? I think he's a fan of Hitch-hikers Guide. Certainly everything he does is alien to me.

Brian Smith, Edinburgh, Scotland

As dave kinsley, derby suggests, this act will initially be aimed at "terrorists", i.e .those who complain that we're invading other countries, killing men/women/children.

Then - just as we've seen local Councils do with surveillance- it'll be extended to just about anyone seen as a nuisance.

Clive, Surrey,

This is a very confused government and it's so sad that, they find it very difficult to do the right thing. Every single move they make is disastrous, be it on immigration, terrorism and crime. All their moves encourage crime and they don't listen. Gordon Brown might lose his seat & PM's office soon

Anthony, London, UK

Personally, I don't want Brown to "blink": I just want him to lose.

Robert, Hull, East Yorkshire

We have this Iraq war based on a lie, now we have the Labour government want to punish people in this country based on the same lie. People arrested should be charged, locking people as suspects is not good enough you are guilty or not, guilty. Catch the rapist and the gun & knive killers.

daphne kenward, cambridge, uk

The people Gordon Brown wants arrest, most of
it cost TAX payers loads and then it result in no charge, why did this new law not apply to the IRA which was a bigger threat. The government wants these new law to destroy lives, on false accusations and can't catch the knife killers on the street

daphne kenward, cambridge, uk

This proposal, dangerous and unneccessary, is yet another encroachment on our treasured freedoms, for which we are envied across the world. The equally ill-conceived ID card scheme is another. When will we be safe enough? When everyone is under constant suspicion and surveillance?

Tom Gape, Birmingham, uk

It's a bit like allowing the police to stop and search anyone, any time on suspicion of carrying a knife. Doesn't worry me - I'm not a knife carrier and I want to be protected from those who do!! And did we not temporarily stop some freedoms during WW2. Well done Brown - stick with it.

M Graham, Auckland, New Zealand

Take him down and move him away from any office of politics or power.

Elizabeth, Edinburgh,

Rae, Dorset, should realise that if we keep on pandering to the terrorists by showing our fear of them through the imposition of ever more Draconian laws, then we may start to feel that the terrorists have won.

Mike Mitchell, Spalding, England

It is laughable how ill informed the naysayers are. This is a good call by the PM; perhaps the first one he has made during his tenure.

James, Manchester,

Gordon 'think of a number' Brown. It was 90 the other year, 56 the other week, now 42. Thats why we cant believe you. If we needed 90 how come 42 is now what we need?

Al, Newcastle,

Goldsmith is quite right. The 42 day rule is another attack on our fundamental freedoms. This is how the Nazi terror and all absolute regimes begin, by claiming to protect the public. As for Goldsmith's conversion we should always welcome an ex sinner. Rae should read Pastor Niebuhr on Nazi Germany.

Daniel Cramer, Welwyn, UK

This bloke Gordo is a barking mad control freak. The cops are not asking for this right to lock folk up without charge for 42 days.

Keeping someone locked up is perfectly possible now.Charge them and get the court to refuse bail.

Merlin, Northampton, UK

“It is most disturbing, indeed shocking, to learn of the plans to extend detention without charge to a level that should be completely intolerable in any free society, and will surely be welcomed as a model by brutal and repressive governments everywhere." Noam Chomsky

David, Brighton,

Perhaps he wants out and is setting this up as a resigning matter, so he could leave on a point of principle rather than be booted out.

Dudley holley, Thorpe Bay , UK

This Socialist State wants to lock people up longer than 24 hours without charge for no other reason than they say the police are under resourced to do their job.
This is something that would not be tolerated in a free democratic society anywhere in the world. It says more about the thinking of Gordon Brown, does this make him the world’s biggest megalomaniac, terrorist or control freak. Mugabe could learn a lot from this man, but he wouldn’t get away with there laws against it.

Ian Bryan, Reading, UK

"Goldsmith had no such morals when he backed Blair and 90 days. We are talking about the security of our nation. Brown should have the support of all decent citizens.

Rae, Dorset, "

So you've believed the lie unequivocally - presumably you also believed iraq could attack us within 45 minutes?

Alex, London,

Detention without charge is amoral. This is not how civilised countries behave. The government's continued attack on individual liberties is more of a danger than terrorism. We're being sleep walked into a stalinist state by brown, enough is enough.

David, Brighton,

Are they sure that 42 days is enough to break people down and make them confess? Perhaps they should be held indefinitely.

Wynton Smith, London,

Once 42 days applies to terrorists, it will be 'extended' for use as neccessary, to anyone who is arrested.

All you 'litter louts' and 'jaywalkers' watch out. They will keep you for 42 days because they can.

dave kinsley, derby, uk

The RIP Act was passed in 2000 and allowed 9 security agencies special powers. Blunkett extended this to near 800 agencies, including the famous (25 Cons/17 Libdems) Poole Council. He also suspended Habeas Corpus. What is to protect us from future abuse of this 42day plan, Mr Brown, Ms Smith? You?

Mike L, Chippenham, Wilts

How did we cope with the IRA without these measures? Were they less of a threat?

Steve, Bideford,

More and more state control where every aspect of our lives are monitored and our legal rights are restrained.

All from a government who took us on an illegal and ill conceived war in Iraq and a government who are in the pocket of big business.

Truly Orwellian, like sheep in a pen

Gavin, lussarden, Scotland

I am glad to see your PM stand on his principles in this matter. In a terror investigation,42 days is NOT an intolerable impostion nor an unconscionable infringement of civil rights; holding a person for 6 YEARS without a charge, as we are doing to "suspects" in Guantanamo - is another matter.

Geoffrey Tudor, Sequim, WA, USA

What is wrong with this man! Is he completely deranged. This will not stop or even deter a terrorist and neither will ID cards as we are on that point. The UK started a war in Iraq with the US built on a lie told by a labour prime minister what did they expect to happen in response!

Neil, almere, Holland

Well done Gordon I don't usually support what you do
but If you make a stand on tis issue you will gain some brownie points. If he had given the country the chance if a referendum on the Lisbon treaty he would be sitting pretty now.

Barry Holmes, Christchurch, New Zealand

'We are talking about the security of our nation.' - so was the dodgy dossier...

This is about fundamental freedoms fought for over many generations. Don't be misled into allowing the Clunking Fist lead us down the road to a Stalinist state.

Charles, Hong Kong,

This 42 day proposal seems grossly unwarranted, and the government's absolute insistence on it seems suicidal.

Is there some hidden information here that we're not being told about? Some hidden deal with some foreign government that Brown doesn't want to tell us about?

JNM, Sussex, UK

Message to the fools who think this law is about wild-eyed fanatics with bombs stapped to their chests : Read what the Terrorism Act actually says.

Most of us could be arrested under at least one section. Would you have job/mortgage/ friends if locked up for six weeks without being told why ?

Paul, Rushden, UK

28 days is enough.why werent these measures tabled when the IRA were around?because there is no oil in ireland of course. law abiding dissenting british citizens are the ones who will be jailed under this law. all it does is give the PM extra time to fabricate charges against them to keep them quiet

dave jones, manchester,

When the word "terrorist" is used, people are expected to graciously accept the suspension of rights which have been available to everyone for ages. Suspected axe-murderers would have greater freedoms than potential terrorists - what has happened to the presumption of innocence?

Padraig, Perth, Australia

It's odd how, Orwellian anti-paedophile laws can come into force without civil libertarians blinking an eyelid. Laws which destroy the privacy of many innocent subjects. Yet when it comes to locking up a small number of potential terrorists for an extra two weeks, the same civil libertarians panic.

Paul Francis, Brisbane, Australia

I think it ridiculous that we should hold these people for 42 days. This will fill the prisons and where will we put all those dangerous people who put their bins out on the wrong day.

Tom, Steeple, Suffolk

McBroon's proposals are not driven by national security concerns, but rather an obsessive desire to control everything and everyone.
He is prepared to lose the vote rather than have to back down again, and has totally lost the plot.
New Labour is taking the country into totalitarian territory.

Padraig, Perth, Australia

these same laws will be used against anyone who objects to the EU taking control of our country. it is paving the way for the gulags

cindy, london, UK

"step to protect our values and our way of life which terrorists threaten to destroy. ". They must be having a laugh, Labour have done more to destroy our way of life than any terrorist could in a lifetime. Their open door immigration policy, The Human Rights Act and PC attitudes have seen to that.

Keith Jones, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand

This is not justified at all. No other country in the civilised world imprisons people without trial for as long as the UK do now. Increasing it to 42 days would give the government the ability to completely destroy peoples lives without producing a shred of evidence against them.

Ed Bullen, Sydney, NSW, Australia

We are talking about a few of the most dangerous criminals being incarcerated for an exta 2 weeks. My heart bleeds for them. Brown is right and Thatcher would have voted with Brown. Cameron is a disgrace.

Craig, Glenrothes, Scotland

Goldsmith had no such morals when he backed Blair and 90 days. We are talking about the security of our nation. Brown should have the support of all decent citizens.

Rae, Dorset,