Northern Ireland

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 4 April 1974.

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Photo of Mr Merlyn Rees Mr Merlyn Rees , Leeds South 12:00, 4 April 1974

That is not true. It is wrong for the hon. Gentleman to throw out figures about which he cannot have any idea. That is not good enough in this situation. A small number of people have gone back to committing crime and have been picked up. This is one of the reasons why we are setting up the scheme that I have mentioned. What can one expect of a man from a ghetto area of Belfast when he goes back there from the Maze? He is returning to the environment from which he came, and against such a social background it would require an extremely strong character to resist the temptations which will arise.