Britain's Police State Critical, Archbishop Sentamu Says

Following Home Secretary John Reid's to increase the time that terror suspects can be held without charge from 28 to 70 days, the Archbishop of York warned today that Britain is in danger of turning into an Idi Amin-style police state.

Dr John Sentamu, who fled Amin's Uganda in the 70s, said: "If you detain people, you must have a chance of successful prosecution," reports The Guardian.

Citing earlier attempts to introduce 90-day detention, Dr Sentamu continued: "The Home Secretary has not produced evidence to show that in 90 days you can prosecute.

"Why does he want all these days? So the police can do what? Gather more evidence?

"To me that becomes, if you're not careful, very close to a police state in which they pick you up then say later, 'We'll find evidence against you.' That's what happened in Uganda with Idi Amin."

Dr Sentamu's comments came after police continued to question nine men arrested in Birmingham over an alleged plot to kidnap and behead a British Muslim soldier.

Urging people coming to live in the UK to adopt British values, he said: "If you're in Britain and you're British, you should cherish the traditions that are here.