PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
Birmingham Six (No.1) (29 April 1990)

That this House notes the recent statement by the outgoing Chief constable of the West Midlands police, Mr Geoffrey Dear, that his belief in the guilt of the six men convicted of the Birmingham pub bombings is now stronger than ever; recalls that, according to Mr Justice Bridge, the two planks of the case against the six men were forensic evidence supplied by the Home Office scientist, Dr Frank Skuse, and confessions in the custody of police officers who were mainly members of the Serious Crimes Squad; notes that Dr Skuse has since been required to resign at the age of 51 for limited effectiveness and that most of his evidence in the Birmingham pub bombings case was set aside by the Court of Appeal in 1988; also notes that the West Midlands Serious Crimes Squad has since been disbanded after about 20 people who had confessed in the custody of officers from the Squad were either acquitted, had charges against them dropped or were released on appeal; further notes that in October 1989 the four persons convicted of the Guildford and Woolwich pub bombings had their convictions quashed after their confessions in police custody were found to have been fabricated; finally notes the recent publication of a document, dated November 1975, from police archives quoting an IRA informer, whose information was accurate in every other respect, as supplying the name of a man who placed one of the pub bombs; and invites Mr Dear to explain the basis for his increased certainty in the light of the above.

Sponsored by:
Mr Chris Mullin (Labour)