Abstract

Ours is an increasingly regulated society. The surveillance society is part of a trend that puts systems first and people second, apparently for our own protection. The threat of terrorism is real enough, but our civil liberties are endangered in the campaign against it. In this talk, Peter Evans will discuss how individuals and institutions – the police, the armed forces, the judiciary, the prison services, MP’s, doctors and journalists – have all suffered from encroachment and interference by a centralising bureaucracy.

Peter Evans was a journalist on The Times for 30 years, and won a British Press Award. As News Editor he was responsible for news gathering in the UK. He was also Home Affairs Correspondent for 17 years, covering such areas as the police, prisons, the causes and effects of crime, race relations and immigration. He has gained unique inside knowledge, as an independent journalist, of MI5 . He was once asked to become a spy and refused immediately.