18 December 2003

FIRST POLL SINCE SADDAM’S CAPTURE SHOWS PUBLIC OPPOSE A UN TRIAL, SUPPORT DEATH PENALTY

The first poll on Iraq conducted since Saddam’s capture, conducted by ICM for The New Frontiers Foundation, shows a 59 – 29 preference for an Iraqi trial over a UN trial.

When asked whether Saddam should face the death penalty or imprisonment, the public prefer the death penalty by 50 – 38. A cross-tabulation of the two questions shows the following break-down:

15 percent favour a UN trial and the death penalty.

13 percent favour a UN trial and prison.

31 percent favour an Iraqi trial and the death penalty.

21 percent favour an Iraqi trial and prison.

(The reason for slightly different totals is a small number of "don’t knows": ie. 59 percent want an Iraqi trial, but 7 percent "don’t know" what the outcome should be.)

Asked the regular ICM tracking question on support for the war, there was 55 - 30 support for the war. This compares with 47 - 41 the last time the question was asked in November - an increase from a 6 point gap to a 25 point gap.

Commenting on the results, Dominic Cummings, Director of New Frontiers, said:

"This poll shows the public support the British and American position that the trial should be conducted by the Iraqis with help from other countries – not the UN. Having failed to deal with Saddam properly, the UN should not be trusted with organizing his trial. In dealing with similar problems in the future, we need to think about new global defence and trade alliances "not rely on the UN."

New Frontiers neither supports nor opposes the death penalty for Saddam. We believe that is a question for Iraqis.

The New Frontiers Foundation was announced this week, ironically about 2 minutes before the announcement of Saddam’s capture. We believe that Britain needs an alternative national strategy to the euro and “ever closer union” in the EU. The obvious failures of the EU and the collapse of the EU summit this weekend provide a great opportunity to begin to change decades of conventional wisdom about Britain’s role in the world and relationship with the EU.

Our alternative vision to "ever closer union" in the EU includes:

(a) Control over all questions of employment conditions and law should be a matter for the British government.

(b) Britain should take back all powers to negotiate trade deals independently of the EU, so, for example, we could negotiate a free trade deal with America.

(c) Civil rights ought ultimately to be matters for the British courts - not the European Court of Justice.