The Hanging Debate - Should the UK Bring Back the Death Penalty? (1983)

A compilation of special reports and interviews covering the 1983 free vote on the death penalty, when Members of Parliament voted on whether to re-establish capital punishment in the UK. Over two weeks, ITN looked at the history of the death penalty and its abolition in Britain and spoke to activists on both sides of the debate. For some it was a simple matter of deterring violent crime, which statistics showed was on the up. For others it was a constitutional issue; while Parliamentarians were overwhelmingly against the death penalty, the general public were more favourable to the policy. Some argued a parliamentary free vote was not enough, and that the public should be allowed a say via a national referendum. Had Parliament been out of step with the public on the issue for too long? #DeathPenaltyDebate #DeathPenalty #CapitalPunishment #Hanging #UKPolitics #FreeVote #Parliament #Referendum #History #Constitution #Debate #Execution 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:36 27 June 1983 - Teddy Taylor interview 00:03:56 6 July 1983 - Sam Hall special report on history of death penalty 00:09:08 6 July 1983 - Glyn Matthias special report on upcoming free vote to reintroduce capital punishment 00:10:48 Leon Brittan (Home Secretary) interview 00:11:29 7 July 1983 - Sam Hall special report on whether whether hanging would help reduce crime 00:12:12 Interview with Lord Denning (Former Master of the Rolls) 00:16:28 Interview with Rt Rev Hugh Montefiore (Bishop of Birmingham) 00:17:33 Interview with Sid Powell (Society of Civil & Public Servants) 00:18:50 Interview with Dr John Dawson (Head of Ethics, BMA) 00:19:53 8 July 1983 - Sam Hall special report on wrongful executions 00:25:45 11 July 1983 - Elinor Goodman report 00:26:38 Eldon Griffiths MP (Con: Bury St Edmunds) interview 00:27:30 David Jenkins (Howard League) interview 00:28:58 Peter Thurnham MP (Conservative) interview 00:30:29 David Amess MP (Conservative) interview 00:31:24 Roy Jenkins (Social Democratic Party) speech 00:32:17 Julian Critchley MP (Conservative) interview 00:32:56 Lady Ewart Briggs (Widow of Christopher Ewart-Briggs) interview 00:34:05 Louis Blom-Cooper QC (Howard League) interview 00:37:45 Michael Harris (Former Under Sherrif) interview on role of the executioner 00:40:58 12 July 1983 - Martin Brandon-Bravo MP (Conservative) interview 00:44:11 12 July 1983 - Report on Church of England synod 00:45:58 Dr Robert Runcie (Archbishop of Canterbury) interview 00:46:37 Second interview with Archbishop Robert Runcie 00:47:47 Rt Rev Maurice Wood (Bishop of Norwich) interview 00:48:36 12 July 1983 - Report on Colin Moynihan polling his constituents 00:49:27 David Crouch MP (Conservative) interview 00:49:57 12 July 1983 - Glyn Matthias report on history of death penalty in UK 00:53:52 13 July 1983 - Interview with Georgina Enston, daughter of Ruth Ellis (last woman to be hanged in Britain) 00:55:46 13 July 1983 - Jon Snow report outside parliament as free vote takes place 00:57:05 13 July 1983 - Glyn Matthias report on free vote and parliamentary debate 01:00:39 14 July 1983 - Michael McNair Wilson MP (Conservative) interview calling for referendum on capital punishment To search the ITN Archive collection on Getty Images, follow the link below: https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/footage... 🎥 Subscribe to our YouTube channel (tap the bell icon and stay up to date with all the latest ITN Archive videos!) -    / @frontlinebyitn   🎥 Follow us on Twitter -   / itnarchive   🎥 Like us on Facebook -   / itnarchiveitnp   🎥 Check out our TikTok -   / itnarchive1955