§ Mr. Kilroy-Silkasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions in 1984 the royal prerogative of mercy was used to effect the early release of prisoners; and, in each case, what was the age, sex, offence, sentence, length of sentence uncompleted and the nature of the illness.
§ Mr. MellorIn 1984 the royal prerogative of mercy was used to effect the release of three men because of illness. One 26-year-old man, serving a total sentence of 18 months' imprisonment for assault occasioning actual bodily harm, breach of an order of conditional discharge and breach of suspended sentences, was released with three months of his sentence to serve because he was suffering from cancer. (I regret that, in the reply given to a question from the hon. Member on 9 July 1984 at column359, the length of sentence uncompleted in this case was wrongly stated as two months.
A 67-year-old man serving a sentence of seven years' imprisonment for illegal importation of drugs was released with 16 months of his sentence to serve because he was suffering from cancer. A 20-year-old man who was serving a total sentence of nine months' youth custody for burglary, behaviour likely to cause a breach of the peace and assault occasioning actual bodily harm was released with three months of his sentence to serve because he was suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia.