An ongoing legal tussle that could pave the way for a Southend serial killer to seek freedom has taken a fresh twist.
Defence lawyers argued in the House of Lords that fixing minimum jail "tariffs" was the job of judges, not politicians.
The lawyers want Home Secretary David Blunkett stripped of his power to fix minimum jail terms for prisoners serving life sentences for murder.
Colin Ireland, of Heygate Avenue, Southend, was given five life sentences in 1993 after he admitted torturing and murdering five gay men in London.
The trial judge told him "life should mean life" and successive home secretaries have agreed that people like Ireland should die behind bars, despite criticism they are unfairly influenced by public opinion.
If the home secretary's powers are given to the judiciary, killers like Ireland and Moors murderer Myra Hindley would be free to seek parole.
Published Tuesday October 22, 2002
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