Britain drops plan for central database of calls, Web traffic

LONDON - The British government said yesterday that it wants communications companies to keep records of every phone call, e-mail, and Web-site visit made in the country. But it has decided not to set up a national database of the information, a proposal civil-liberties groups had condemned as a "Big Brother"-style invasion of privacy.

The government said in October that it was considering a central database of phone and Internet traffic as part of a high-tech strategy to fight terrorism and crime. But yesterday, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said the plan had been dropped.

A document outlining her department's proposals said the government "recognizes the privacy implications" of a database and "does not propose to pursue" it.

The government said it was backing a "middle way" that would see service providers store and organize information on every individual's phone and Internet traffic so that police and other authorities could access it on request.

The Home Office estimated that introducing the new system would cost up to two billion pounds, or $3 billion.

British Internet service providers are already required to store records of Web and e-mail traffic for a year. The new proposals would also require them to retain details of communications that originate in other countries but pass across British networks - for example, if someone in Britain accessed a U.S.-based e-mail account.

The Internet Service Providers Association said companies would want the government to compensate them for the cost of keeping the data.

The government said providers would not store the content of calls, e-mail, or Internet use. They would retain details of times, dates, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, and Web site URLs.

Smith said officials had to strike "a delicate balance between privacy and security," but insisted that police and intelligence agencies needed more tools to fight crime and terrorism in an ever-more-complex online world.

"Advances in communications mean that there are ever more sophisticated ways to communicate, and we need to ensure that we keep up with the technology being used by those who would seek to do us harm," Smith said.

The proposals are still a long way from becoming law. The government is seeking public comment until July, and widespread opposition is expected.

Chris Grayling, law-and-order spokesman for the opposition Conservatives, said the government had "built a culture of surveillance" and should scale down its proposals.

Critics say existing surveillance powers have been abused by local authorities investigating relatively trivial offenses. The government said there would be strict safeguards on who could access the information.

Britain would consider taking Guantanamo Bay detainees if the United States asks for such help to close the prison camp in Cuba, British Justice Secretary Jack Straw said yesterday.

Before Straw met with U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. in London, reporters asked the two men about the possibility of Britain's taking some inmates from Guantanamo.

"If we're asked, of course we'll consider" doing so, Straw said. Holder said the United States had not yet made such a request. U.S. officials are determining how to handle different groups of detainees before making requests to other countries, he said.

The attorney general

is visiting Europe to discuss Guantanamo and try to boost international cooperation subjects including terrorism, organized crime, and cyber crime.   - Associated Press

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