Sir Richard Branson: When it comes to the death penalty, there’s only one question that matters

The best of Voices delivered to your inbox every week - from controversial columns to expert analysis Sign up for our free weekly Voices newsletter for expert opinion and columns Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. On today’s World Day Against the Death Penalty, I can think of countless reasons why we should all stand up against this inhuman and brutal form of punishment. Elbegdorj Tsakhia, the former president of Mongolia who led his nation’s abolition of the death penalty in 2016, noted that crime seemed not to be affected at all by abolition, suggesting that the executions never had a deterrent effect to begin with. But what continues to concern and frustrate me the most is the death penalty’s staggering rate of error, even in places that take so much pride in the efficiency of their criminal justice systems. Sir Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group and stalwart activist for the global abolition of the death penalty, has today, on World Day Against the Death Penalty, reaffirmed his commitment to helping end this brutal and inhumane punishment globally in an exclusive op-ed for The Independent