Abu Qatada could be entirely free within two years, says Government adviser But the new TPIM orders mean that unless Qatada is handed back to Jordan, he could only be held under restricted conditions for two years. "With people like that you have to do one of two things, you either put them on trial in this country if he has committed offences under our law, and goodness knows we've got plenty of those offences, or if we can't do that, then the next best solution is certainly deportation and I don't think that should be ruled out," Mr Anderson said. It's been indicated he will be released on these extremely stringent bail conditions. That's to give the incentive ... to the Home Secretary and the Government to put in place a suitable arrangement with Jordan. If it can't, let's assume putting him on trial on this country is out of the question, because let's assume he hasn't committed any offences under the law of this country, then you're down to the TPIM, the control order replacement. Asked whether it was a case of deporting Qatada or letting him go free within a couple of years, Mr Anderson replied: "Yes, subject to the possibility of a TPIM and that is for the Home Secretary to decide and for the courts to monitor." Earlier, the Attorney General said the hands of the Government were tied by the rule of law. "The Government is obviously very concerned about this case and very much wishes to see Abu Qatada deported to Jordan and, when he is in Jordan, tried fairly if the Jordanian authorities wish to put him on trial," he said. He cannot be deported unless the assurances which are required following the judgement in the European Court of Human Rights can be secured. He added the Government had been "in many ways very successful" after the court commended its agreement with Jordan. But Hazel Blears, former counter terror minister, said she had wanted to see the judge defer bail for another three months. She added the current regime of control orders was "significantly weaker" than the previous system. Asked how long suspects should be held, she replied: "I would hold somebody as long as it takes to put in place a system that can provide the public with a degree of assurance about their safety. We had control orders, which means you could direct where somebody could live. They were within the rule of law. They had an amazing amount of judicial oversight and they were perfectly proper. Now, you cannot say somebody should be relocated away from their associates. They will have access to mobile phone and the internet. I think the new regime is significantly weaker than the old regime. I think you hold somebody for as long as it takes to put in place a regime of surveillance and security.