Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many extraditions have been approved since 1990 in respect of which written assurances have been received that the death penalty will not be imposed.

The statistics sought are not held centrally.

The Extradition Act 2003 makes it clear that the Secretary of State must not order extradition if the subject of the extradition request could be, will be or has been sentenced to death for the offence concerned in the requesting territory. However, this does not apply if the Secretary of State receives a written assurance which she considers adequate that a sentence of death will not be imposed, or will not be carried out (if imposed). Similar provisions were included in legislation governing extradition prior to the 2003 Act.