London, Nov. 4 (ANI): British counter-terrorism legislation is under threat from European judges in Strasbourg.
Measures which allow police to keep terror suspects in custody for questioning for up to 14 days are at the centre of a legal challenge by Colin Duffy, an Irish republican dissident who was arrested last week over the murder of David Black, a Northern Ireland prison officer.
The case will raise fresh questions about Europe's influence over the country's legal system, following rows over prisoner voting and the deportation of foreign criminals, the Telegraph reports.
It comes after Chris Grayling, the new Justice Secretary, pledged a radical rethinking towards Britain's approach to the European Court of Human Rights, the report said.
Duffy claimed that during a previous murder inquiry in 2009, when he was detained for a fortnight for questioning, the UK authorities breached Article 5 of the European Convention, which says suspects should be brought before a judge "promptly" and tried within "reasonable time".
According to the report, legal powers to detain suspects for this length of time have been in force for more than a decade and have been repeatedly approved by MPs.
Duffy's legal challenge has already been rejected by domestic courts, but Strasbourg officials accepted the case last month, prior to his recent arrest, the report said.
The Government will now have to respond to the claim that his rights were breached, before judges decide whether to hold a full hearing.
If Duffy's Strasbourg case succeeds it could force the Government to amend the Terrorism Act 2000, which sets out how long terror suspects can be held by the police - an issue which attracted controversy when Labour attempted to raise the maximum pre-charge detention limit to 90 days, the report said. (ANI)
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