Jan 2, 2004

THE RIGHT TO KILL BURGLARS IN BRITAIN

by Liberty and Power

Perhaps there is hope for the normally complaint subjects of Queen Elizabeth II after all. In response to increasingly rampant gun crime, a plurality of BBC listeners would like a new law to be introduced in parliament to allow homeowners to kill burglars :

"If listeners of the Today programme could introduce a new law to Britain, it would be one allowing them to kill an intruder in their home should the need arise.

That was the surprise - and, in the programme's own word, controversial - choice of listeners who voted for the piece of legislation they would most like to see in the statute book.

The audience for the Radio 4 programme were asked to put forward ideas that had a real chance of becoming law. Five were shortlisted and more than 26,000 took part in the final vote.

The winning idea, announced yesterday, would authorise home-owners to use any means to defend their properties from intruders. It received 37 per cent of the vote.

It narrowly beat a proposed Bill making it mandatory for individuals to offer their organs for transplant after death, unless they specifically opted out."