Britain: The Conservatives have turned the heat up on Metropolitan Police commissioner Ian Blair, insisting he must be quickly exonerated or removed over the fatal shooting of an innocent Brazilian at Stockwell tube station last July.
Meanwhile, Conservative leader David Cameron and his shadow home secretary, David Davis, have said the party wants to scrap the proposed ID cards and use the money to build more prisons.
The Tory return to a "prison works" policy coincides with a warning by the chief inspector of prisons that Britain's overcrowded jails could soon be forced to put up "house full" notices and refuse newly convicted criminals.
That warning from Anne Bowers came just days after the prime minister, Tony Blair, and lord chancellor, Lord Falconer, attempted to defuse the row over "soft sentencing" by announcing a review of the rules giving a one-third discount to offenders who plead guilty at trial.
Recently appointed home secretary John Reid was also bidding to restore public confidence in his troubled department yesterday, ordering the removal of paedophiles from probation hostels located next to schools while hinting at a possible UK version of America's "Megan's law", allowing the "controlled" release of information to parents and the public about sex offenders living in their area.
Meanwhile, the crisis of confidence about the leadership of Britain's police force continued to attract headlines potentially damaging to the Blair government.
The family of Jean Charles de Menezes declared itself outraged by suggestions that two investigations by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) into last July's Stockwell shooting could be delayed until the autumn because Sir Ian reportedly cannot give his evidence until after he has been on holiday.
Mr Davis yesterday set the scene for a potential row with the government, demanding that the reports from both inquiries be published within the next fortnight, in advance of an inevitably tense period around next month's first anniversary of the London bombings.
Complaining about the effect of a series of seemingly authoritative leaks from the IPCC, Mr Davis said: "Every day that passes without resolution sees public confidence in the commissioner bleeding away . . . It is inconceivable that this current state of paralysis can be allowed to continue through July."
Mr Davis made clear he was not calling for Sir Ian's resignation, while adjusting the Conservative Party position and raising fresh doubts about whether the commissioner can survive.
Just days after Mr Blair declared his full confidence in Sir Ian, Mr Davis told the BBC's Sunday AM programme: "We need to resolve this and we cannot have this as a permanent Sword of Damocles hanging over the commissioner . . . either exonerate him or replace him, it's one or the other. You can't just leave it as it is now. It needs to be resolved, frankly, within the next few weeks."
Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Mr Davis cited the Met's "first line" role in the battle against terrorism, while arguing: "The Met is in paralysis, plagued by internal turmoil, damaging leaks and uncertainty over the future of its commissioner. The slow release of the IPPC reports on the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes means they are hanging over Sir Ian Blair's head. Until the reports are published, and a decision has been made for him to stay or go, the commissioner is hobbled."