The British government Tuesday April 3, 1996 sought to rush through a law giving police greater powers to stop and search terrorism suspects on the streets.  The bill passed the House of Commons Tuesday and was approved by the House of Lords Wednesday. It become law Thursday April 4, 1996.

The haste for a new law apparently was prompted by fears of another Irish Republican Army bomb campaign around Easter. The IRA ended its 17-month-old cease-fire in February with a devastating bombing in London's financial district that left two people dead.

Until this new law, officers on the British mainland could stop a car and search the vehicle and its passengers. But a pedestrian's pockets were off limits. That would no longer be the case under the new proposed legislation.

The bill, which amends the Prevention of Terrorism Act, was announced by Home Secretary Michael Howard. "It wouldn't take a very big pocket to hold a bomb like this, which could do very considerable damage to the building we are sitting in at the moment," said Howard, holding a small, bomb-like device.

Powers to search people, storage buildings and freight in ports (only with special and limited authorization) might not seem like much in many countries, but civil liberties advocates here say there has not been enough time to consider the implications and that the measures could be open to abuse.

The opposition Labour Party signaled its acceptance of the bill, but with some reluctance. Labour Home Affairs spokesman Jack Straw said the party would not try and obstruct the legislation.

"I share that concern," Straw said, referring to possible violations of civil liberties. "But that concern has to be balanced against the needs for the safety of the public."

Still, some Labour members of Parliament are worried about the timing and civil rights ramifications of the legislation. They contend that past draconian security measures have had a poor record for getting terrorist convictions.  And now that Labour has once again gained control of Parliament, as of May 1997, we shall have to wait and see how they deal with the Irish question.  This is the first time in may years that the Labor party has had the opertunity to set policy.