Justice Secretary Jack Straw has said there are “no circumstances” in which Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe would be released from prison.

Mr Straw said there was nothing in the evidence he had seen which would lead the authorities to free the serial killer.

At justice questions in the Commons yesterday Conservative MP Julie Kirkbride (Bromsgrove) said a constituent’s relative was among Sutcliffe’s victims and wanted reassurance “he will never be let out of prison”.

Mr Straw said: “I would like to provide that reassurance ... ultimately that decision would be a matter for the parole board and the courts and maybe for mental health tribunals.

“All the evidence that I have seen on this case, and it’s a great deal, suggests to me that there are no circumstances in which this man will be released.”

Sutcliffe was convicted at the Old Bailey in London in 1981 for the murder of 13 women.

Now known as Peter Coonan, the 63-year-old has begun a legal process to set a limit on the time he spends in custody.