Cameron slams cell door on prisoners' votes

London: David Cameron yesterday vowed to fight to defend British sovereignty from European judges by insisting that prisoners will not be given the vote.

The Prime Minister said the ban on voting from jail was for Parliament to decide rather than ‘a foreign court'.

Downing Street insiders insisted there would be no votes for convicts while Cameron remained in charge of the country. It places No 10 on a collision course with the unelected European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

On Tuesday, Euro judges rode roughshod over the will of Parliament by upholding a 2004 ruling that Britain's blanket ban on prisoner voting is unlawful. MPs had previously voted by an overwhelming 234 to 22 majority to keep the ban.

Defiant blast

Yesterday, Cameron was asked in the Commons by DUP leader Nigel Dodds: "Will you give an undertaking that you will not succumb to the diktat from the European Court of Human Rights in relation to prisoners' voting?

"Will you stand up for the resolution that was passed in this House by an overwhelming majority and that you will stand up for the sovereignty of this House and the British people?"

Cameron replied: "Well, the short answer to that is yes."

In a defiant blast at Strasbourg's meddling, he went on: "I have always believed that when you are sent to prison, you lose certain rights and one of those rights is the right to vote and crucially I believe this should be a matter for Parliament to decide and not a foreign court.

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

Tory MPs pointed out Cameron had left himself no room for a climbdown to Strasbourg with his categorical remarks.

Earlier in the day, Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls had said Labour would back Cameron if he chose to fight the court's ruling.

Any Bill introduced in the Commons would face a crushing defeat — leaving the battle with Europe deadlocked.

If Cameron holds his nerve, it would turn the tide on a string of reversals at the hands of the Euro court.

Strasbourg would either have to back down or risk a constitutional row.

The court has given Britain six months to award prisoners the vote or face paying millions in compensation to disenfranchised paedophiles, rapists and murderers.

But Tory MPs — who had joined the Mail in urging Cameron to ‘take a stand for Britain' — said any fines would be unenforceable.

Downing Street sources said the court, in its one concession to the Government, had offered a ‘chink of light' by saying it was up to individual nation states to decide how to proceed.

One possible stumbling block is the Liberal Democrats, who are strong supporters of the Euro court.