Home Secretary David Blunkett, Britain's top law enforcement official, announced a drastic expansion of the country's domestic espionage agency on Wednesday and urged a strengthening of anti-terrorism laws including those allowing detention of foreigners without trial.
Blunkett spoke in Parliament after publishing a 51-page document setting out the government's belief that Britain -- a close ally of the US in the invasion of Iraq and the war on terrorism -- faced a "particularly high" threat of terrorist attack "because of the evidence that terrorist cells are active" in this country.
"I am in no doubt that the terrorism threat remains and the need to have the right legislation in place is greater than ever," he told Parliament.
Blunkett said the country's MI5 internal espionage agency would be expanded by 50 percent with the recruitment of 1,000 new agents over the next few years, including desk officers and linguists.
Blunkett also said Britain would spend the equivalent of almost US$6 million in improving intelligence-gathering by the police Special Branch, which is supposed to deal with threats to internal security.
In the future, Blunkett said, Britain would have to ponder how it ran trials of terror suspects to determine whether telephone intercepts by intelligence agencies could be used as evidence. In recent days he has also indicated he believes Britain should consider lowering the burden of proof to ensure convictions of would-be suicide-bombers and to hold some terror trials in secret.
In Parliament, Blunkett offered a staunch defense of powers acquired since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to detain foreign terror suspects indefinitely without trying them.
"I am convinced that the current threat leaves us with no option but to continue to use these powers," he said. But he said it would be a "grave step" to seek legislation empowering authorities to hold British citizens indefinitely without trial or charge.
At present, Britain is holding 14 foreigners under the terrorism regulations, which expire in 2006.
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