Cameron stands up to court over jail votes

David Cameron put the UK on collision course with the European Court of Human Rights as he signalled he would fight plans forcing the UK to give prisoners voting rights.

The Prime Minister insisted the decision was one for MPs, not a “foreign court”, after human rights judges issued an ultimatum giving Britain six months to change the law.

He told MPs he backed their overwhelming vote last year that effectively opposed the European Court of Human Rights ruling.

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At Prime Minister’s Questions, he said: “I have always believed when you are sent to prison you lose certain rights and one of those rights is the right to vote.

“Crucially, I believe this should be a matter for Parliament to decide, not a foreign court.

“Parliament has made its decision and I completely agree with it.”

Labour said it would back Mr Cameron if he chose to oppose the ruling.

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Earlier Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls said there was cross-party agreement about not giving the vote to prisoners and the court’s ruling was the “wrong thing”.

He said there was cross-party consensus: “The court first said this in 2004, that prisoners should be able to vote, and Labour then said we disagree and we did not implement it.

“I am all in favour of prisoners having the right kind of support and being rehabilitated but voting is one of the things I think you give up if you go to prison.”

He added: “If David Cameron is going to go out there and fight this one, we will be supporting him on that.”

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The court acknowledged it was up to national authorities to decide exactly who could vote from jail but said denying the right to all inmates indiscriminately is illegal.

The ultimatum was issued as the Strasbourg court ruled in a separate case that depriving an Italian convicted murderer of voting rights did not breach his human rights.

But the judges emphasised that this was because in Italy, unlike the UK, there was no general, ban in place.

They effectively challenged the UK Government to agree within six months on what parameters to set for British prisoners, and to scrap the total ban.

Last year MPs voted by 234 to 22 in support of a motion tabled by Tory David Davis (Haltemprice and Howden) and Labour former justice secretary Jack Straw opposing plans to give inmates the vote.