§ Mr. Kelleyasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make public the reasons for the release from Walton Prison, Liverpool, in 1976 of John Robinson who subsequently committed murder; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Joseph Deanasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will inquire into the circumstances surrounding the release of John Robinson following his conviction in 1962 for murder, and his sentencing to life imprisonment for another murder at Leeds Crown Court this week; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Merlyn ReesThe Home Secretary may order the release of a person sentenced to life imprisonment only if recommended to do so by the Parole Board and after consultation with the Lord Chief Justice and, if he is available, the trial judge. He is not required to accept such a recommendation from the Parole Board, and the final decision rests with him. The Board recommended Mr. Robinson's release after he had been detained for 13½ years, and on the information available to him, which included the views expressed by the Lord Chief Justice and a report from a consultant forensic psychiatrist, my predecessor concluded that there were no grounds for thinking that Mr. Robinson was likely to commit a further similar offence and that the recommendation should be accepted. At the time of the trial the judge, who is now dead, made no recommendation to the Home Secretary about the length of time for which Mr. Robinson should be detained.