In the aftermath of the Birmingham pub bombings by the Provisional Irish Republican Army ( PIRA ) on 21 November 1974 , the government passed the Prevention of Terrorism Act . During its second reading , Powell warned of passing legislation " in haste and under the immediate pressure of indignation on matters which touch the fundamental liberties of the subject ; for both haste and anger are ill counsellors , especially when one is legislating for the rights of the subject " . He said terrorism was a form of warfare that could not be prevented by laws and punishments but by the aggressor 's certainty that the war was impossible to win
Birmingham pub bombings
Birmingham pub bombings
Enoch Powell