The Home Secretary has threatened to opt out of human rights laws and introduce stronger anti-terrorism legislation after three terror suspects absconded from control orders.

John Reid today blamed limits on police powers placed by the Human Rights Act, Parliament and the courts for the latest blow to hit the controversial control orders. “Sometimes it feels as though we are having to fight with one hand tied behind our back,” he said.

Two brothers of Anthony Garcia, who was jailed for life last month for the fertiliser bomb plot, absconded from a control order imposed on them under terrorism laws. Lamine Adam, 26, and Ibrahim Adam, 20, and a third man, Cerie Bullivant, 24, went missing this week.

But there was confusion today over the threat posed by the three men on the run. The UK’s most senior policeman Sir Ian Blair, Metropolitan Police Commissioner, said: “Nobody can be perfectly satisfied that they are not a risk to the public here, but the intelligence is pointing in another direction.”

Mr Reid told MPs during an emergency statement that British security services were urgently seeking the men.

“I am not at all complacent about the risk these individuals pose. They are dangerous and we can take nothing for granted even though the security services’ assessment is that they are not considered at this time to represent a direct threat to the public here in the UK,” he said.

Mr Reid told Parliament that new legislation would be proposed in the next few weeks to increase police powers over terrorist suspects. The Government has failed to pass legislation, which would have allowed increased pre-charge detention and the courts have imposed limitations on the use of control orders, deemed to override suspects’ human rights.

“As I have consistently made clear, control orders are far from 100 per cent effective, but under our existing laws they are as far as we can go. Unfortunately, within these limits, it is very difficult to prevent determined individuals from absconding,” Mr Reid told MPs.

"Nevertheless, I am already appealing to the House of Lords in several other control order cases about the interpretation of Article 5 ECHR (deprivation of liberty). We will consider other options - including derogation - if we have exhausted ways of overturning previous judgments on this issue.”

The three men who absconded were not deemed to be in the most dangerous category of terrorism suspects and the terms of their control orders were lenient. Under current law they could have been placed under far more rigorous restrictions.

The Home Secretary threatened to derogate from European human rights laws if law lords would not allow him to strengthen police powers, within the existing legislation.

Tony Blair joined Mr Reid in calling for stronger detention laws: “Unfortunately, we were unable to maintain the legislation which we wanted to do which would give us the power to detain people. Under our existing law, control orders are as far as we can go.”

Police said that the Adam brothers failed to contact a monitoring company on Monday evening. Bullivant failed to report to a local police station on Tuesday morning. The Adam family live in Ilford, East London, and are of Algerian origin. Bullivant is also from East London.

Lamine Adam was repeatedly mentioned as an associate of those convicted during the Operation Crevice terrorism trial, which exposed plots to blow up Bluewater, the Ministry of Sound and synagogues. A key witness alleged that Lamine Adam was planning a separate attack on a British target.

He worked for London Underground alongside a man, known during the trial as “Imran”, who was asked by terrorism leaders in Pakistan to launch a suicide attack on the Tube network. Imran also breached his control order. He has been on the run since escaping from a psychiatric unit in West London last August.

Police sources said last night that the three most recent absconders were unlikely to have passports under the terms of their control orders. Three other men have also absconded from their control orders, with police fearing that one has fled abroad on a false passport.

Peter Clarke, head of the Metropolitan Police Service Counter Terrorism Command, said: “We know that Lamine Adam, Ibrahim Adam and Cerie Bullivant are associates and may well be together. I am asking members of the public who actually see these men not to approach them, but to call 999 immediately.”

The orders on the three were imposed under the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005. Lamine Adam is 6ft (1.82m) tall, with a slim build, light complexion and short dark brown hair. He was last seen with a short beard or stubble.

Ibrahim Adam is 6ft 2in, slim, and has a light complexion and short dark brown hair.

Cerie Bullivant is white, 5ft 7in, slim with brown receding hair and brown eyes. He is thought to now have short hair. Last night Lord Carlile of Berriew, QC, the Government’s terror watchdog, said: “The controls placed upon them were proportionate and the minimum that were needed to stop them leaving the country – it being suspected they wish to leave to join the insurgency.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact the confidential AntiTerrorist Hotline on 0800 789 321.

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