§ Mr. PopeTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on when it is Her Majesty's Government's policy to support officially a plea for clemency on compassionate grounds from a British national imprisoned overseas. [67699]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienDecisions on whether to support an application for clemency are taken at ministerial level. When considering an application for clemency on compassionate grounds, Ministers will, as a general rule, mirror the policy applied by the UK prison services when considering applications for early release on compassionate grounds submitted by prisoners in the UK. Each application for support will be considered on its merits on a case-by-case basis.
Ministers would not normally support a plea for clemency on compassionate grounds if a Prisoner Transfer Agreement exists between the UK and the sentencing state and a transfer to the UK could be completed within a reasonable time frame. In such circumstances, any request for early or temporary release on compassionate grounds could then be made to the appropriate UK prison authority.