SOLIHULL MP Lorely Burt was one of the few MPs to support giving prisoners the right to vote, as the Commons vowed to defy European judges and continue a ban on inmates taking part in elections.

She said her experience as an officer in Holloway Prison, London, had convinced her that taking away human rights from prisoners would only make them more likely to offend again.

But MPs backed a motion to continue denying prisoners the right to vote, by 234 votes to just 22.

It means Britain is set to defy the European Court of Human Rights, which has ruled that a blanket ban on prisoners’ voting is a breach of their human rights.

The Government could still be forced to compromise – or face the prospect of paying out thousands of pounds in compensation to prisoners who take legal action against it.

MPs overwhelmingly backed a motion which called for there to be no change to rules which prevent almost all prisoners from voting.

Ms Burt was one of the few dissidents. She was a "teller" for opponents of the motion, which means that she did not vote but did formally oppose it.

Speaking in a lively debate before the vote, she said she had worked as a prison officer and told colleagues: "If we don’t want to them to leave prison and re-offend, if we want them to leave and rejoin society as full members who will work and pay taxes, I think we have to wake up to the idea that depriving them of their dignity as well as their liberty is not the way to go about it."

Voting was a human right, she said. "When you take away a prisoner’s human rights you deny their humanity. You tell them they are worthless. You reinforce their isolation from the world."

MPs who voted in favour of the motion included Steve McCabe (Lab Selly Oak), who said he had consulted Birmingham residents and found there was very little support for giving prisoners the right to vote.

He said: "I have not had a lot of people contacting me arguing for rights for prisoners."

And he pointed out that the Government planned to introduce directly-elected police commissioners to oversee police forces, saying: "I struggle with the idea with the police and crime commissioners being elected by the prisoners I think that would be absurd."

The Commons debate followed a lengthy campaign by axe killer John Hirst who successfully argued in the European Court of Human Rights that he was entitled to vote.

Ministers had initially said they had no choice but to accept the court’s ruling. However, as opposition to the proposed reform grew, they agreed that MPs would be allowed a free vote on the issue.