The British government today insisted police should be allowed to hold terrorism suspects without charge for up to 90 days but signalled it would compromise rather than risk defeat in parliament.
"The 90 days recommended by the police is, we think, the right thing for the security of the country," Home Secretary Charles Clarke told reporters after talks with opposition counterparts.
But he said he would continue to talk with the main parties during the day before deciding what limit to recommend.
"I have to deal . . . with the reality that there is not at the moment a consensus in the House of Commons for that 90-day figure. That's what I am consulting on later today to see what might be the appropriate figure that we could achieve," he said.
Mr Clarke was forced to shelve the 90-day plan in parliament last week as it became clear rebels in the ruling Labour party were poised to inflict the first major parliamentary defeat on Prime Minister Tony Blair since he took power in 1997.
Mr Blair has personally tied his authority to the argument, stating that the police demand to hold terrorism suspects for up to three months was compelling.
But a group of Labour and opposition parliamentarians had pressed for a 28-day limit and no more. The current limit is 14 days. Mr Clarke suggested he would press for something higher than 28 days.
"I think that's an unacceptably low figure," he said.
The government will seek to portray its opponents as risking British security, believing that public opinion is on its side.
A YouGov opinion poll for Sky News on today found 72 per cent of those canvassed believed the 90-day detention limit was appropriate in the wake of suicide bomb attacks on London's transport system on July 7th.