CONFIDENTIAL
particularly in relation to law and order; but at least they might be more receptive to an explanation on political grounds than to something coming officially through the governor.
یال
ba
احمد
7 March 1978
R N Posnett
Dependent Territories Adviser
fai
Mr Cortazzi Mr Stewart
Mr Posnett
1.
I accept entirely what Mr Posnett says about the awkward position in which governors will be placed as a result of the Government's decision not to rescind the Creech Jones doctrine; and in pacticular what he says about power and responsibility going together. But I am doubtful about his proposal that Mr Rowlands should write personally to selected Chief Ministers explaining the Government's commitment to the policy of capital punishment and its inability to take amending action in Parliament in existing circumstances.
2. I have suggested to Mr Stewart on other papers that, once Mr Rowlands's letters have issued, he (Mr Stewart) should send a personal follow-up letter to all governors giving further details of the background to the Cabinet's decision to do nothing for the time being and to the difficult instructions conveyed in the circular telegram. I suggest that in this personal letter governors might be given discretion, depending on local circumstances and their own relationship with their Chief Minister, to pass on some of this additional explanation in bowdlerized form.
8 March 1978
w Pusnett/over
R.J. Shattra
R J Stratton
Mr Stewart
I apee
CONFIDENTIAL
with Mr Stratton
Abe
9/ii