MP DAVID Chaytor has made an impassioned plea to the Thai government for clemency on behalf of alleged drug smuggler Michael Connell.

He says there are special circumstances which demand that the unemployed 19-year-old from Bury is sent home to face justice in Britain.

Mr Connell, of Kestrel Drive, was arrested in November in Bangkok with 3,400 Ecstasy tablets found in his travel bag.

In a televised statement, he said he will plead guilty to save his life: the maximum punishment for drug smuggling in Thailand is execution although, as a foreigner, his sentence is likely to be commuted to life imprisonment.

Mr Chaytor, Labour backbencher for Bury North, described Michael's situation as a nightmare for any parent who has teenage children. "While I do not condone Michael's alleged actions, there are special circumstances which need to be considered. Michael's family and friends are convinced that Michael cannot be fully responsible for the situation in which he finds himself.

" Evidence suggests that Michael is a very vulnerable young man who is open to exploitation and manipulation. Michael may be neither able to understand the implications of his actions, nor to instruct a lawyer or to plead in court.

"I have been in touch with Fair Trials Abroad, and know they wish to take up his case, but they too believe that he should be extradited."

Mr Chaytor explained that Michael was born with profound hearing loss in his right ear, and at school had a Statement of Special Educational Needs.

"In addition, Michael has had a very deprived educational background. He attended two different primary schools. He had a very chequered high school education, and attended five different institutions in five years, leaving without qualifications."

The MP said Michael would need good legal representation to present this evidence in the most effective way: but his divorced parents, Derek and Maureen, cannot afford to pay.

"They do not know why he went to Thailand, but it appears to be a very strange thing to do for a young man in his position, normally needing a considerable amount of confidence and experience," he said.

"If he stands trial his prospects are very bleak to say the least. In court he won't understand a word that is said. No interpreter will be provided, and all submissions will have to be in the Thai language.

"A court lawyer will be provided if he doesn't have one, but in that case it will be little better than if he had no representation at all: no interpreter will be provided if the court-appointed lawyer does not speak English."

Mr Chaytor added: "His family and friends are extremely concerned about his vulnerability in jail and his general physical and mental condition, as well as the question of good legal representation. They believe he is not fit to stand trial in the sense of being fully responsible for his actions and fully aware of the consequences.

"It is this that I have tried to emphasise to the Prime Minister, the Attorney General and the Justice Minister of Thailand. I have also written to Baroness Symons, Minister of State at the Foreign Office, asking her to intervene."