Editing Civil liberties (section)

===United Kingdom===
{{Main article|Civil liberties in the United Kingdom}}
Civil liberties in the [[United Kingdom]] date back to [[Magna Carta]] in 1215 and 17th century [[English common law|common law]] and [[statute law]], such as the 1628 [[Petition of Right]], the [[Habeas Corpus Act 1679]] and the [[Bill of Rights 1689]]. Parts of these laws remain in statute today and are supplemented by other legislation and conventions that collectively form the uncodified [[Constitution of the United Kingdom]]. In addition, the United Kingdom is a signatory to the [[European Convention on Human Rights]] which covers both [[human rights]] and civil liberties. The [[Human Rights Act 1998]] incorporates the great majority of Convention rights directly into UK law.

In June 2008 the then Shadow Home Secretary [[David Davis (British politician)|David Davis]] [[David Davis by-election campaign, 2008|resigned his parliamentary seat]] over what he described as the "erosion of civil liberties" by the then Labour government, and was re-elected on a civil liberties platform (although he was not opposed by candidates of other major parties). This was in reference to anti-terrorism laws and in particular the extension to pre-trial detention, that is perceived by many to be an infringement of ''[[habeas corpus]]'' established in Magna Carta.