§ 14. Mr. Ian Harveyasked the Secretary of State for War the existing regulations with regard to the use of handcuffs in the Army, with particular reference to those on a court-martial charge.
§ Mr. HeadIf a commanding officer considers handcuffs necessary to ensure the safe-custody of an accused soldier, he may direct that the accused be escorted to and from his court-martial in handcuffs. It is however laid down that no soldier under escort, whether in 931 handcuffs or not, will be marched through public thoroughfares or taken on buses or underground trains. One cannot avoid a prisoner in handcuffs having to cross the street from the vehicle in which he has been conveyed to court into the building.
§ Mr. HarveyWill my right hon. Friend assure himself that these regulations were scrupulously observed in a recent court-martial in Germany?
§ Mr. HeadYes, Sir. I have looked into that case and I am satisfied that the accused was taken in a vehicle. The photographs were taken in the very brief interval between his leaving the vehicle and entering the court.