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Government proposes amendments to counter terror bill

The government has introduced a completely new clause to the Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Bill which could see people imprisoned for up to 10 years if they enter ‘designated areas’ abroad. The controversial change, which critics claim infringes on human rights, would see anyone found guilty of the proposed crime, which involves ‘entering or remaining in an area’ designated as a terror risk by the Home Secretary, facing the possibility of being jailed for up to 10 years unless they had a ‘reasonable excuse’ or were already there when it was designated. The plans are similar to those enforced in Australia which bans travel to ‘declared areas’. Before the new amendment was tabled, the Bill proposed to make accessing propaganda online ‘on three or more different occasions’ a criminal offence, which the Joint Human Rights Committee claimed violated Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

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