question. That is why successive British Governments have taken the view that the decision, whether or not to abolish, or
reinstate, the death penalty in the UK, should be left to individual Members of Parliament voting according to their
judgement.
The fact that the death penalty remains on the statute books in
this country (although it has not been used since 1964) does
not prevent us from making appeals for clemency on humanitarian
grounds, or in cases where breaches of international human
rights have occurred, such as lack of a fair trial or
extra-judicial killings. We shall continue to raise our
concerns with the Chinese at every appropriate opportunity.
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