---

Extradition: UK and USA

My Lords, I understand that. I hope that we made it plain when we were going through the Bill that our intention was to include the USA in the schedule and to allow that matter to be debated when it came before the House. We did debate it before the order applied. Noble Lords discussed that issue and the order was made. I am simply saying that although I understand that these issues have generated a deal of passion, I would not tire the House today by repeating the answers that I gave in reply to those debates. I need to say to the noble Lord, Lord Hodgson, that he is not right in saying that there has been a dramatic change in the nature of the offences for which extradition has been sought. For the period 2003 to 17   June 2005, 17 people were returned to the USA from the United Kingdom for the following offences: six drug offences, five fraud offences, two sexual assaults on a minor, two theft cases, a child abduction case and a murder. The average length of time from the date that the person was arrested to the time that he or she was returned to the United States was 30 months. For the period 2003-04—there have been no returns so far in 2005—five people were returned to the United Kingdom from the USA for the following offences: drugs, child abuse, murder, sex offences and child abduction. The average time between the request being made and the person being returned to the United Kingdom was five months. Regarding returns to the US from the United Kingdom since the new provisions came into effect on 1 January 2004 until 17 June 2005, so far there have been 11 persons returned to the United States from the United Kingdom for the following offences: six drug offences, an indecent assault, a theft, a grievous bodily harm, a mail fraud and a fraud. The average length of time from the date that the person was arrested until surrender to the United States was seven months. It is—