Terror plot suspect free for Olympics

One of the most dangerous terror suspects ever known in Britain has been freed to return to London ahead of the Olympics, MPs were told today.

The man, known as CD and feared to have been plotting a Mumbai-style attack, had been banned from the capital under anti-terror laws.

But the Commons was told that the suspect, who has been in a Midlands city, had now been allowed to come back to London.

"The existing UK controls on the movement of terror suspects lapsed today," Labour MP Pat McFadden said at Prime Minister's Questions.

"This includes the case of suspect CD." Mr McFadden stressed that a judge at an appeal by CD last year said: "Relocation is a necessary and proportionate measure to protect the public from an immediate and real risk of a terrorist-related attack."

The Labour MP added: "Could the Prime Minister therefore tell the House why his government supported that relocation power at the court hearing last year but has since legislated to remove it and to give freedom to suspect CD and others like him to come to London in the run-up to the Olympic Games?"

David Cameron defended the decision to ditch control orders, which included the relocation powers, and replace them with terrorism prevention and investigation measures.

"Most people across this House realise that the control order regime needed reform," he said. "It did not have public confidence, nor did it have the confidence of many people in the police and security services.

"We have reformed it, we have worked with the police and the security services. We have put in all the resources that they believe are necessary to make sure our country is kept safe."

CD, a Nigerian-British national whose identity cannot be revealed, trained alongside the 21/7 attempted bombers who targeted London transport.

He was banned from the city last February after MI5 warned he was a leading figure in a "close group of Islamic extremists in north London".

Since returning in 2009 from Syria, where he is thought to have undertaken extremist training, MI5 said CD had made several attempts to obtain firearms for potential attack plans.