Emergency times require emergency measures. This did not happen when wartime emergency powers were rushed through parliament in 1914 and 1939, with long-lasting and controversial effects. So the first and most important overarching change that should be made to the bill is to introduce a sunset clause. Anti-terrorism legislation and emergency powers in Northern Ireland have required renewals of this kind, and properly so. But they do not require powers that end up creating as many problems as they solve, and which could have been resolved by proper legislative scrutiny.

Source: The Guardian March 19, 2020 19:30 UTC