Amnesty claims that this is not enough and is pressing the government to drop the death penalty - which still exists, at least in theory, for some crimes - and to ratify all international conventions and treaties on human rights.

Ethical foreign policy

To fail to do so would undermine the government's ambition to implement an ethical foreign policy, according to Amnesty director David Bull.

Foreign Secretary Robin Cook seeks to implement an "ethical foreign policy"

"The Government needs to ensure that its own house is in order if it is to have effective influence on human rights in other countries."

Amnesty's report comes on the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and calls for more government action to raise the profile of human rights world wide and to support the establishment of a permanent and independent International Criminal Court.

The report also calls for improvements in the way asylum seekers are treated in the UK. And recommends that every asylum claim should be scrutinised carefully to ensure foreigners at risk of persecution are not forced to go home.

Amnesty also wants all arms exports to be continually monitored and controlled.