New murder laws 'may send wrong message'

The Conservatives raised alarm over the Government's planned overhaul of murder laws yesterday, warning they risked sending the wrong message over the seriousness of the crime.

The moves have been hailed by ministers as the biggest reform of homicide laws for half a century. The partial defence of provocation – used by some killers to enable them to be convicted of manslaughter not murder – is being scrapped. That defence required killers to show they suddenly snapped, rather than took premeditated action. It has been used by men who argued they killed wives they discovered were unfaithful.

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The defence of provocation is being replaced. Killers could be convicted of manslaughter and avoid the mandatory life sentence that accompanies a murder conviction – if they can establish they were forced to kill because they were driven by "words and conduct" which left them "seriously wronged". The Ministry of Justice said this defence would only be available in exceptional circumstances. It cited the example of a rape victim killing her attacker after being taunted about what happened or a mother killing a man after finding him trying to rape her daughter.

They could also be convicted of manslaughter if they could demonstrate they lived in "fear of serious violence" from their victim. This change may benefit men and women who have suffered the "slow burn" of domestic violence.

But Nick Herbert, the shadow Justice Secretary, said: "No one should underestimate the impact of domestic violence, but the proposed new partial 'slow burn' defence would represent a significant shift in the law. We are concerned that no changes should appear to diminish the seriousness of murder."

The Government shelved plans to introduce US-style "murder one" and "murder two" offences to recognise the difference between, say, multiple killings by terrorists and mercy killings by relatives of the terminally ill.