No safety in paper promises

In the wake of the July 7 London bombings, Tony Blair was full of tough talk. "Let no-one be in any doubt. The rules of the game are changing," he declared. The implication was that human-rights organisations and political opponents who objected to the authoritarian changes he proposed were at best naive and at worst risked undermining Britain's security. A central plank of his proposals was a change to the rules for deporting terrorist suspects. Under international human rights law, the UK does not deport people to countries where they are likely to face torture, persecution or death. However, Mr Blair insisted his government would negotiate "memoranda of understanding" with such regimes. In plain English, these are "no torture, no inhuman treatment" deals. So far, agreements have been signed with Jordan, Lebanon and Libya.