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Nigel Baker

Ambassador to the Holy See (2011-2016)

Part of UK in Holy See

13th August 2014

Death to the Death Penalty?

Justice_original_sizeThe following is a guest blog by Steve Townsend, Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy to the Holy See

On 13 August 1964, Peter Allen and Gwynne Evans made British judicial history, although not in a way they would have appreciated. They were the last people executed in the United Kingdom. Throughout the 1960s there was growing support in the British Parliament for the abolition of capital punishment, and it was finally abolished for ordinary crimes in 1969.

The global abolition of the death penalty is a long-term human rights objective for the British Government. Of the 195 independent states that are members of the UN or have UN observer status, only 40 still maintain the death penalty in both law and practice (in other words have carried out a judicial execution in the last ten years). In 2013, there were 778 reported executions (although these figures are incomplete as there are no available figures for China, Egypt or Syria). We consider that the death penalty undermines human dignity and there is no evidence that it works as a deterrent. There is also the horrible consequence of not being able to correct errors – much of the impetus in the UK for the abolition was because of notorious cases of wrongful execution.

The British Government and the Holy See are united in their opposition to the death penalty. Successive Popes have spoken out against it. Pope Francis has made the defence of the dignity of the human being one of the cornerstones of his teachings, and has spoken of the “inalienable value of human life” and appealed for “the dignity and centrality of every individual always be safeguarded, with respect for fundamental rights”. Many Catholic organisations, such as the Community of Sant’Egidio, also campaign for the abolition of the death penalty.

The number of countries who still carry out executions is slowly decreasing. This year the UN will vote again on a non-binding resolution calling for a worldwide moratorium. The overall global consensus is in favour of abolition, and we will continue to support this.

1 comment on “Death to the Death Penalty?

  1. The execution of poor Derek Bentley scared and frightened me as a child. The decision of the Home Secretary not to reprieve him when his sixteen year old accomplice who fired the shot was “detained at Her Majesty’s Pleasure” seemed monstrous to me at the time. Today it appears even more cruel and vindictive. I will never forget.

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About Nigel Baker

Nigel was British Ambassador to the Holy See from 2011-2016. He presented his Credentials to Pope Benedict XVI on 9 September 2011, after serving 8 years in Latin America, as…

Nigel was British Ambassador to the Holy See from 2011-2016. He presented his Credentials to Pope Benedict XVI on 9 September 2011, after serving 8 years in Latin America, as Deputy Head of Mission in the British Embassy in Havana, Cuba (2003-6) and then as British Ambassador in La Paz, Bolivia (2007-11). In July 2016, Nigel finished his posting, and is currently back in London.

As the first British Ambassador to the Holy See ever to have a blog, Nigel provided a regular window on what the Embassy and the Ambassador does. The blogs covered a wide range of issues, from Royal and Ministerial visits to Diplomacy and Faith, freedom of religion, human trafficking and climate change.

More on Nigel’s career

Nigel was based in London between 1998 and 2003. He spent two years on European Union issues (for the UK 1998 EU Presidency and on European Security and Defence questions), before crossing St James’s Park to work for three years as The Assistant Private Secretary to His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. At St James’s Palace, Nigel worked on international issues, including the management of The Prince of Wales’s overseas visits and tours, on the Commonwealth, interfaith issues, the arts and international development.

Nigel spent much of the early part of his FCO career in Central Europe, after an initial stint as Desk Officer for the Maghreb countries in the Near East and North Africa department (1990-91). Between 1992 and 1996, Nigel served in the British embassies in Prague and Bratislava, the latter being created in 1993 after the peaceful division of Czechoslovakia into the separate Czech and Slovak Republics.

Nigel joined the FCO (Foreign and Commonwealth Office) in September 1989. Between 1996 and 1998 he took a two year academic sabbatical to research and write about themes in 18th century European history, being based in Verona but also researching in Cambridge, Paris and Naples. The research followed from Nigel’s time as a student at Cambridge (1985-88) where he read history and was awarded a First Class Honours degree, followed by his MA in 1992.

Before joining the Foreign Office, Nigel worked briefly for the Conservative Research Department in London at the time of the 1989 European election campaign.

Nigel married Alexandra (Sasha) in 1997. They have one son, Benjamin, born in Bolivia in September 2008.

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