David Davis resigns: what does this mean?

David Davis, shadow home secretary, has shocked Westminster by quitting as an MP to force a by-election in Haltemprice and Howden. Having failed to stop the government extend detention without charge to 42 days - a stance which some Tories were occasionally uncomfortable with - he will fight to defend Britain's civil liberties in Howden and Haltemprice, which means "noble endeavour". Cue string orchestra.

This has been long in the planning - as early as last week Davis was refusing to confirm his movements after the vote to TV producers. But Cameron only found out last night -- as did Clegg who will not field a Lib Dem opponent even though they would only need a 6 per cent swing to take it

It raises a huge number of questions in the interim with answers as they emerge

1. Did David Cameron agree to it? Does he support him? Did he try and stop it? There is top level irritation about this. Just now, Cameron has stressed this was a "personal" decision without the backing of the party or shadow Cabinet. Given that, it seems likely Cameron tried to change his mind.

2. When was this decided: is it true Nick Clegg was told before David Cameron? No, it seems. He told Cameron straight after the vote, and Clegg later the same evening.

3. When will it be? No firm decision: July 10 current favourite

4. Will there be a backlash from constituents, particularly over the cost of a by-election?

5. Would the Tories repeal 42 days detention without trial if they get into power?

6. Will he get the Shadow Home Secretary job back? Looks unlikely - Cameron said he must have a 'permanent' team and Davis isn't expecting to come back.

7. Why was he surrounded by his former leadership team: Greg Knight?

8. Who will be Shadow Home Secretary in the interim? Dominic Grieve, currently shadow attorney general

9. Is there any chance he could lose, particularly if UKIP fight? Highly unlikely

10. Will this expose any splits in the wider party over 42 days (we'll be watching conservativehome.com who supported 42 days)

11. Will Labour put up a candidate or deny him a certain level of publicity by refusing to put up a candidate? Labour are considering not standing, and could instead tacitly back an independent candidate

12. Will David Cameron visit him on the campaign trail? He says yes

13. Will the Tory by-election machine [the Lord Ashcroft one] help DD? No, he will not centrally funded but raise money himself

14. How many members of the Shadow Cabinet support him privately? How many will publicly support him?

15. What tactics will Davis use during the camapign, aided by press supremo Nick Wood who handles the media for many on the right

Comments

[Labourboy]

Labour have suggested they won't put up a candidate and give extra promotion to this 'stunt', though nothing 100% certain has come out yet.

[Cllr Ken Tiwari (independent)]

My comments in yesterdays telegraph were
right, to say how David Davis is rubbing the
shoulder with people, he Mr Davis have nothing in Common, his resignation from the
front bench is correct ! All members of the
parliament have a duty to think of us the people before politics, todays terrorist are like
a gutter-snake, kill them, if possible? or keep
them in cage?

[peter buss]

An utterly self indulgent move, And just when the Tories are eally gaining some momentum. This guy is not a Team Player - thats for sure.

[Ed Jacobs]

As a Labour Party member, I firm believe we should put up a candidate to stand against Davis. Whatever ones views on the rights and wrongs of 42 days, it is an important issue, touching on the fundamental issue of our time - namely how to we balance civil liberties with the need to take on a terrorist threat, the likes of which we have never seen before. As such, I would reccomend to my party colleagues that they put up a "big hitter" such as Stephen Twigg.

[Andrew Towell]

Well, what this means is this is the 2nd person who is still willing to stand up for the people and put there neck on the line in the name of Freedom. God bless you David, you’re a true Man with spine to say what he thinks and give us a position of power and financial security in order to do so. If people are against you on this then they are against the stripping of our civil liberties.
You are in the same category as when Robin Cook resigned from Labor because his party was sending the country to a war in Iraq, what a speech he made! Agreed with every word of it, that was a man speaking the truth!

The 1st person was Nick Clegg when he said he “will break the law and refuse to provide details of his identity if the government presses ahead with plans to make ID cards compulsory.” and “If the legislation is passed I will lead a grassroots campaign of civil disobedience to thwart the identity cards programme … and I expect thousands of people like me, will simply refuse ever to register.”

Well, you've got my support and vote Nick, I want my Prime minister to stand up for freedom and be willing to go to jail in the name of that freedom! We are Great Britain and are supposed to be the leaders of freedom and democracy yet we are the country that holds people without charge longer than ANY other and has more CCTV cameras than any other country in the world.

These two should team up and would win by a land slide at the next general election!

CCTV just documents crime, does not prevent it! A pair of sun glasses and a hood makes it totally useless for any kind of identification!

ID cards are a waste of money and will give a free pass to terrorists via "fake id cards", also they will encourage fraud as one form of ID mean’s no messing around, it’s accepted everywhere! The database holding all our personal details will be a treasure trove for hackers and that information will be worth a fortune on the black market throughout the world! No database or server is un-hackable, it would HAVE to be online in order to verify who we are via “chip and pin” function on card.

A DNA database that includes innocent people and children is a disgrace and should be triple checked by an independent public body and only be taken when a serious crime is committed.

There is not words to describe the injustice in being held for 6 weeks held in a cell without being changed or having any evidence against you, being told why you've been arrested and can be released at any time without so much as an apology! This is enough to send any sane man, insane!

President Bush signed a law suspending the right of habeas corpus to persons "determined by the United States" to be an "enemy combatant" in the "Global War on Terror". We also helped in this by letting Rendition flights land at British airports heading to and from the US, sometimes in order to be tortured abroad.

I’m just sick at the mindset of our current politicians, they practically committed treason by handing over power and sovernty to Brussels/EU via this so called “treaty”, but you only have to look at the constitution in order to see what the EU really want but settled for this Treaty! If they wanted a constitution, they will get it, in due time. One these are in place they are almost impossible to remove. I don’t want the EU to have a President and Foreign policy.

Finally I just want to say, terrorist laws today will be used against everyday people in the future, that's one of my main worries! You also never know what goverment/party will be running this country in years to come, we could unknowegly end up electing the next Hitler as the germans did!

At what point are you a "terrorist" or "enemy combatant"? Will this definition every change? Will it included dissenters? You really never know what will happen in this "war OF terror".

Even today, councils are using terrorist laws to spy on families via CCTV, dont belive me, read it your self.

[Disgusted of Lingfield]

Excellent idea. Could only be bettered if the entire House of Commons followed his example.

[Stanley Embling]

The resignation of David Davies....I've always respected Mr Davis as a former Military Man, and a man of principles who you could trust and follow, (basing my own experiences at 71 y.o.a. not least those gained in the West Indies 1949 -53 and those gained in the Malayan Jungles tracking down CT's during the 1950's..)
Therefore I totally agree to his every word relating to our freedoms and Civil Liberties,(enshrined in the Magna Carta of 1215,) now being erroded away faster and faster and faster, by what in my opinion are
"unaccountable" unelected faceless EU Beurocrates allegedly with the blessing of this Scottish dominated "Nu" Labour Government, who it appears will allegedly use bribery, to ensure that they get their own way to ensure that the many tenticles now spreading at an ever increasing rate through our Corridors Of Powere in England appear now unstopable!.....In my opinion this is a disgrace!..As such say to The Irish People; "Down with the Lisbon Treaty"!! .....
Oh Lord.... I'm getting my old bren gun all primed-up again at 71 y.o.a....then realise; I'm not that carefree, strong, energetic, young ENGLISHMAN , jungle fighter as I was 50+ years ago! But to this day I would gladly help put right what is now clearly taking place in our proud country ENGLAND, ENGLAND, ENGLAND, once so good and true predominant flag The Red White and Blue will we beat them?... Well I guess .... ENGLAND, ENGLAND, YES YES YES!!! .
STAN the MAN

[David from Cambridge]

It is not at all clear what this is all about unless the Conservatives are, at heart, tacitly in support of the 42 day internment programme too. George Osborne was an attendee at this year's Bilderberg Conference, so we may realistically assume that they likely will form the next Government. The support of the Ulster Unionists, to 42 days, is surely significant here; couldn't they have secured more favourable concessions the from the Conservatives instead? I suspect that there is a lot more is at stake here, and that Mr. Davies is possibly quite right, and incredibly courageous, even heroic!

[Philip Bolt]

I'm not sure of what the final effect of Mr Davies' action will be but it offers a modicum of comfort that there is one man in the higher echelons of politics who views the continuous erosion of our civil liberties in much the same way as I.

To repeat oft stated facts; there is no need for 42 days detention. Existing mechanisms allow for extensions beyond the current period IF THERE IS A PROVEN NEED. ID cards will in no way improve security. All they are liable to do is create problems for those who are mis-identified and such mis-identifications are CERTAIN to occur.

[Bill Harding]

A brave man and a man of principle. What a contrast to the scheming, unelected "prime minister" we're stuck with for the next two years.

[Chloe]

Whatever your views on the resignation issue, you have to admit this thread haas brought some frothing illiterate racist nutters out - or is it the recent hot weather ?

[J Nowlandd]

I ask myself what Churchill would say if he were here today. Everything I know about the man tells me that he would be utterly furious at the not so slow slide into a Police state. It is not the fault of the Police just as in Germany the police did not ask for sweeping powers, they were given to them and then they were told to enforce them.
Britain is the light of the world and does not deserve to be ruled over by closet fascists who have one aim in mind, the complete control of thought and deed of the British nation.
Therefore I am proud of David Davis for doing something nobody else has the guts to do. He is saying, " no ".
If a law can be abused, it will be abused.
We have already seen the blatant abuse of the Ripa and general terror laws.
If Police Commisioners showed more leadership and made sure that their officers did not abuse their new powers and if our elected council leaders ensured that the Ripa laws were not abused, we might not be so reluctant to give powers to our public services.
More CCTV cameras yet more crime.
DNA records up, yet more crime.
Detention without charge extended, yet more terrorist threats.
This tells me and any sensible person that these laws are not and never were for the reasons we were given.
Clearly they were for reasons which are becoming more obvious by the day.
If you love liberty, if you love democracy and if you love Britain , you will stand up behind David Davis and be counted.

[Stanley Embling]

Regards David Davis resigning , wont make any difference to many, but what Mr Davis should be doing in my opinion is getting an investigation into certain "Funding" and "Expenses" which the Labour Party has received off a certain large Union over a Number of years to this day! Yes Investigated and myself and other Victims will supply supporting evidence !... Because I'm allegeing such funding and "expenses" are Tainted were allegedly extracted off a certain section of Union member (circa 2000) from a certain area illegally.Yet Such Matters and requests for investigation were reported to Suir John Lyon's Commissioner for Standards and he refused such requests!! So just what's going off??? Stan the Man

[Colin Suter]

I cannot understand why David Davis did this. Given the recent wave of support for the Tories. He was looking at the real possibility of taking a top job in a future Tory government. Surely he would then have been best placed to deal with this more effectively. I fear he has made an error and perhaps he already knows it privately - it must have been a fit of passion. Personally, I can see no reason why ID cards should not be implemented - handled properly it would make us all a lot safer - scare mongers are over playing their hand in this. Terrorists love these open societies and the anonymity they can expect among us. The 42 day detention legislation might be redundant if ID cards were being used to track targets in our midst. I have lived 4 years in an ID card society and nothing about my life changed. There are lots of ways ID cards work to make life easier and safer if you are a law abiding, tax paying stiff like many others. Any country that has such a generous welfare system as the UK should preserve against fraud and waste by complementing it with ID card validation. UK taxpayers will benefit, simple as that.

[A.C.Taylor]

DD acting alone on a point of principle? Please. Politicians do not have principles. DD is an old operator and party loyalist. This whole affair smells of a Conservative move to capture more of the central ground. The Labour party seem to have bought the vanity package. It would not be the first time they have got things wrong.

[swisschris]

Clegg is not a very good party leader , he must contest EVERY seat ,and ,although I understand Mr Davis in his actions, would He and the Tories repeal the 42 days law when they are elected ?

[Robert Batchelor]

Good for him! 42 days, for heavens sake! We're not Burma.

[Andrew T]

"Colin Suter" has no idea what he's talking about!

The system proposed for the ID card are totawlly different from any other ID card system in place by any other country!

I dont understand how it will protect against fraud? Are they not fake passports? Are they not corrupt goverment officals who would have access to this database and could sell information or even dicectly enter new fake identidies into the system, making them fully legit.

How would a database holding such a large amount of information be kept secure? It would need to be "online" (not standalone) in order to function and would be a no.1 target for hackers and fraudsters world wide.

What happens if the database goes offline for somereason due to some unforseen failire, the whole country would come to a standstill as no one's identify would be able to be verified.

What about the proposal of "chip and pin" on the card, we already know this is a weak system in it's self.

Finally, what "extra" do we get from and ID card that we cannot get from a biometric passport?

[The Great Writ]

Magana Carta If Mr Davies fails, then our democracy has failed. There are none so enslaved as those who falsely believe they are free. If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy?

[Mark]

DD. is the greatest thing to happen to british politics. We are all behind you. I haven't heard a single person say otherwise. Only the Cowards and those less well informed are behind the government. Lets get too it We aren't going to let you take our freedom.. To do so would be to let all of our History and Warriors down. England England England Freedom Freedom Freedom.

[Steve]

After David Davis flounced out to make his announcement I could have sworn that the next person through the door was Tory MP Mike Penning who supported David Davis' doomed bid for the leadership. Was it just a happy coincidence, or is he the next to resign his seat?

[davida.patterson@virgin.net]

Perhaps former Euro-MP Nick Clegg is reluctant to have a Liberal Democrat stand against Mr.Davis as this would then give David Davis even more opportunity to expose just how even more pro- Europe than Labour the Liberal Demicrats are ? And to hghlight how many laws adversely affecting Britain the Lib.Dems. actively support and would enforce with even more zeal (such as bin taxes) ? Don't forget Clegg's enforced cowardly abstention in the House of Commons over the Lisbon Treaty which the Irish have just rejected. The Irish have had the sense to see the real implications for democratic liberty which Davis is warning about .
David A. Patterson. Keadby N.LIncs.

[stephen hoffman]

a man of principle , political suicide yes but he obviously thinks principles are more than this. We are sleepwalking into a police state , if you read the book 1984 everything such as that is coming true , we on wednesday night had our liberties thrown away due to bribes and deals - is this what the supposed cockpit of our nation , parliament has turned into a tawdry group of career politicians

David Davis has shown for once principled politician isn't an oxymoron .

incidentally i hope he wipes the floor with kelving mackenzie.

[stephen hoffman]

*kelvin

[Frank]

The whole political debate has been a total farce from start to finish. Brown used it to try and regain some credability by winning a vote while the Tories used it purely to try and break Brown. Meanwhile the majority agree with the extension as I do. I would rather be locked up in error for 42 days than have the country suffer a successful terrorist plot. Although we have seen examples of misuse of terror laws before from policing the labour party conference to local councils snooping on the public. We need to be tackling the extremists without one hand tied behind our back but also not giving more power to the state for it to miss use against us. As far as DD's maveric behaviour goes its totally ridiculous he should be kicked out of the party on a permanent basis. Cameron should also think again and be supporting the bill it seems to me hes taken a purely opportunist position by oppossing just for the sake of it. Brown should have made the whole affair a free vote in the first place. Hats off to Ann Widdecomb for not being presured into toeing party lines