May poised to make Qatada statement

Apr 17 2012

Home Secretary Theresa May is expected to reveal fresh plans to put radical cleric Abu Qatada on a plane back to Jordan.

Mrs May will make an emergency statement to the Commons in which she will say that a deal with the Arab state will allow Britain to deport the cleric who was described by a judge as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe, according to reports.

It comes after she was criticised by Labour for allowing "too much drift and delay" in the Government's bid to send Qatada back to his home country.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper has called for Mrs May to explain the steps she was taking to deport the 51-year-old, arguing that she should have acted sooner to prevent his release from prison in the first place.

The Home Office has said it is making "good progress" in talks aimed at getting assurances from Jordan that evidence gained through torture would not be used against Qatada in his upcoming terror trial.

Earlier this year the European Court of Human Rights ruled that deporting the cleric without such assurances would be a "flagrant denial of justice". Mrs May's address will come after the deadline to appeal against that decision passed at midnight.

It is believed the Home Secretary could also ask judges to put Qatada, who is currently on bail and under curfew, back behind bars again as part of the new drive to send him back to Jordan.

A Home Office spokesman said: "The Home Secretary will make a statement in relation to the Qatada case later."

Ms Cooper said on Monday: "There has been too much drift and delay in the way the Home Office has handled this case since January. The Home Secretary needs to explain urgently to Parliament what she is doing to get Abu Qatada deported, and to make sure there are strong enough safeguards to protect public safety in the meantime."

Her comments came after Keith Vaz, the chairman of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, claimed that Jordanian officials have given the Government "all the assurances it needs" to deport Qatada.