Teacher, leave those kids alone The horrific scenes played out in Tunisia have hardened the resolve of those pushing for ever greater powers to tackle extremism in the UK. The question of what actually constitutes extremism remains incredibly unclear however. New guidelines out today will force schools and other public bodies to do more to identify and tackle those who are likely to become extremists in the future. But are teachers really equipped to do this and will it simply lead to greater targeting of Muslims and other groups with socially conservative views? More to the point, is it really the job of teachers to police which of their pupils' views are acceptable and which are extremist? These are big and thorny issues that the government are wading into. Will they get the balance right? History suggests we should be wary.
The other prong of the government's anti-extremist agenda is the targeting of hitherto private online communications. This week's terror attacks have renewed calls for the government to implement the latest version of the so-called 'snoopers' charter'. Asked about the bill in Parliament yesterday, the prime minister indicated that it is no longer sustainable for citizens to retain full privacy online. The proposed measures are largely supported by MPs but are gaining growing opposition outside. The desire for online privacy is something shared by both multinational tech companies and hardline trade union activists. Could the tide of support yet turn on the snoopers' charter?
Yesterday also brought news of yet another fracking application to be turned down, this time by local authorities in Lancashire. Whereas previous applications have been in the southen Tory shires, the rejection of fracking in the former industrial northern heartlands suggest that George Osborne's call for a shale gas revolution could fail to get off the ground. The Liberal Democrat prospective leader Tim Farron writes for Politics.co.uk today on why he is committed to opposing the controversial means of extracting gas. | 
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