The Death Penalty: A Matter of Emotion, Not Reason

As a torch-and-pitchfork populist it’s not a great surprise that Guido Fawkes is in favour of the death penalty. Nor will it be a great shock when he gathers the 100,000 signatures needed to petition parliament* to consider reintroducing capital punishment. And I agree with my old friend Neill Harvey-Smith who, while opposing the death penalty, ain’t afraid of discussing the issue even though, perhaps especially because, the polls consistently suggest a majority of voters would like to bring back hanging.

So be it. Nelson Jones makes an astute point: the abolitionist cause was fortunate in its timing. Not just because it was a product of a liberal era but also because the test case was the dreadful execution of Derek Bentley not the appalling crimes committed by Ian Brady and Myra Hindley. Had the Moors Murders been the poster-case for or against hanging the outcome might well have been very different.