THE DEBATE in parliament on hanging has really very little to do with the morality of a barbaric Hicklis of order.
Even the Armagh bishops found secular issues uppermost in discussing the issue.
Times acknowledges 'as traditional as the call for the reintroduction of Stormont, chance of success', the strengthening of the hard. liners after Tory election gains and the increased influence of the Police Federation has rattled the stalus Cuu. Fears are that hangings would only escalate violence in the province, reprisals, hostage taking, and assassinations of the judiciary.
The non-jury and little evidence Courts' would once again colt scrutiny. The limited successes of the supergrass campaign would be wiped out and every potential conviction would be met by waves of rioting.
The voice of the establishment says: 'we do not want to create martyrs' despite the fact that killing has been the one consistent thread of British policy in Ireland.
Of course the current problem is that if terrorists were to be exempted it would smack a little bit of a 'special' or should we say 'political' status.
Hence the rush to get the vote out of the way before the hang-em all brigade of the Tory conference gets unleashed.
We would point out that the death penalty is already in use in the North. It was hunger strikers. It was used on two Derry youths killed by a Landrover. It was used against 14 peoon Bloody Sunday demonstrating in Derry It has been used 14 times against nationalists found guilty of offending British soldiers by their presence on the streets, sentenced to execution by maintaining law their minds when with as much increase ine SK 'Diplock under public used on the found guilty and summarily executed. orivale Contractors.
Of the £500m cuts, 4L4 MI will defence, f140m £50m tionalised industries, {36m education, £30m from employment, £20m overseas aid transoon toll.
The cuts in a defence budget swollen by 'Fortress Falklands' Will spending per cent higher in real year For the health service it means a cut of 0.5 per cent in the budget and a probable 2 per cent cut in the renovation programme.
against the factors which CoLaDuLe towards growth of the health serBritain's population is ageing.
year 2000 over one quarter of potential health service users will be over 60. It has been estimated that just to WILD LOUS arcaticall NHS budget has to grow 0.7 per cent per year in real Cost Run TON OILOS LICIC N the rapidly increasing cost of medical Lectiology which adds another necessary 0.5 per Coll growth into the budget. In total it is calculated that the budget must grow 1.4 per cent In real tells Just to keep in the NHS in the same black Through the strict imnearly 200 miles 'he cash limits polic oo, with its assumed NH. rate of inflation, was the basis on which the Tories against health workers in the seven month long battle for a decent wage in the health serThat defeat led to VICC talk in government circles of the health sons eine government's anti-union This is also one of the objectives of the government's privalisa tion policy now being applied with full force in the health service.
works in VICe out NHS On February, Norcular Health Authorities, private Companics draw up of * Expanding sector in the ing out of beds was Pay creased by since then. time per cent salary forfeiting any of it.
ment. % GDP Spent on Health weren Netherlands Switzerland Health Index % GDP % GDP Quality spent " spent Ranking health (1975)(1) (1980)(2)
8.5 8.5 b.9 Photo. CM COOKSON general ad. % min costs as health financhealth ex ed from penditure (3) public sector(1)
7.6(1972 91.6 2.8(1974 66.5 2.6(1975-6) 92.6
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Although the calls for the reintroduction of the death penalty for terrorism have been as the Irish