THE rather over-excited Michael Gavin (Letters, January 19) seems to be confusing two very separate issues:

1. Whether the majority of people in this country are in favour of the death penalty.

2. Whether capital punishment for such crimes as rape and murder is a deterrent.

The answer to the first point is unclear - we simply do not know.

The answer to the second is very clear - it is not a deterrent. And history teaches us that it never has been.

As for his comment that politicians do not have the guts to stand up and be counted, I think this demonstrates only that Mr Gavin finds it difficult to accept that some people do not agree with his extreme view. I for one would not vote for an MP who was in favour of the death penalty.

If we had a referendum and the vast majority of the British people voted against restoring the death penalty, would the likes of Mr Gavin accept this and stop harping on about it as though it is some "miracle cure-all" for society's ills? I doubt it!

M DUCKWORTH (Mrs), St Michael's Court, Blackburn.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.