Most Britons support capital punishment following London riots

78 per cent voters want Parliament to debate the return of capital punishment.

Nearly two-thirds of Britons want murderers to be executed following the recent rioting across the country,a poll has revealed.

A survey by pollsters Angus Reid,following this months outbreak of rioting across Britain,found 65 per cent of adults surveyed were in favour of capital punishment while only 28 per cent were opposed,the ‘Daily Express’ reports.

Three-quarters of voters (78 per cent) want Parliament to debate the return of capital punishment.

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The issue was last debated in the Commons in 1998,when MPs rejected a call for the restoration of death penalty by 158 votes.

Meanwhile,Tory MP for Witham in Essex,Priti Patel,has said that she is not surprised by the overwhelming support for the capital punishment.

Im not surprised there is such overwhelming support for the return of capital punishment. We need a serious debate about this issue in Parliament,it is long overdue, she said.

A separate poll by Survation at the beginning of August,before the riots,showed 53 per cent of voters supported a return of capital punishment.

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The Angus Reid poll found a majority of voters thought execution a more appropriate punishment for murders than life in prison.

The last hangings in Britain were carried out in 1964.