TORIES WOULD HAVE LET COSTA CRIMINALS GET OFF SCOT-FREE

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 27th May 2009

Some of the North East's dangerous criminals could have walked free under Conservative policy on Europe, according to research by the Liberal Democrats.

Conservative MEPs voted against the European Arrest Warrant, which has subsequently extradited 355 people back to Britain in four years, as well as slashing extradition times across Europe from an average of eighteen months to just 43 days.

And in the North East the European Arrest Warrant has led to the arrest, extradition and prosecution of Peter Melling - a member of a paedophile gang who committed a range of child sex offences against three boys from Tyneside, who was extradited from Bulgaria, and Paul Anthony Bures - who took boys with the learning difficulties from Spain and subjected them to months of abuse. Bures gave himself up to Spanish police after a European Arrest Warrant was issued and was given an indeterminate sentence after being convicted of sexual activity with a child.

Fiona Hall said:

"Conservatives spin a line on crime - they claim to be against it. But they fought to stop the European Arrest Warrant because they'd rather indulge their eurosceptic prejudices than make a serious effort to arrest dangerous criminals."

"It's vital that British police and prosecutors have the power to bring villains back to justice. North East criminal Paul Anthony Bures gave himself up after a European Arrest Warrant was issued for his arrest, was flown back to the UK from Spain and is now serving time in Britain.

"The Tories would rather leave police and prosecutors mired in red tape and taking years to catch criminals. Once upon a time, British criminals knew they could escape to a life on luxury on the Costa del Crime. The European Arrest Warrant has put a stop to that."