TNAG-0723-FCO40-921-Capital-punishment-in-the-Dependent-Territories-1978 — Page 34

CONFIDENTIAL

Registry No.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION

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DRAFT

SUBMISSION

To: Mr Stratton

Parliamentary Unit

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Confidential.

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1.

CAPITAL PUNISHMENT IN THE DEPENDENT TERRITORIES: MISS LESTOR'S ORAL PQ

I submit a draft reply together with notes for supplem- entaries and a background note, to the question by Miss Joan Lestor MP (Labour Eton and Slough) for oral reply on 22 November. The reply is based on that which was approved for one of the supplementaries for the House of Lords debate on the Pitt Report on 8 November.

2.

Miss Lestor has not asked any previous questions on this subject, but she did write to the Secretary of State on 12 December 1977 forwarding a constituent's enquiry about the recent executions in Bermuda. The Secretary of State replied on 22 December that the Government would be reviewing the whole question of capital punishment in the dependent territories after the Christmas recess. Miss Lestor returned to the subject on 12 January and was told by Mr Rowlands on 1 February that the Government were considering ways in which possible changes could be presented to the House and hoped to put these issues forward soon. It is plain from this corres- pondence that Miss Lestor would like to see the appropriate steps taken to avoid any further executions in the dependent territories.

3.

The question was discussed in Cabinet on 23 February when it was agreed that the political climate in the UK made it an inopportune time to raise the question of capital punishment in the dependent territories. It was decided therefore that the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary should continue to defend the present position and Cabinet would consider the problem again at an appropriate time.

CONFIDENTIAL

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