Activists urge Britain to back death sentence appeal

Ms Sandiford, originally from Redcar, was arrested in May last year on drug trafficking charges. Police in Bali said they found over 10lbs of cocaine worth £1.6 million in the lining of her suitcase.

There were gasps of surprise in the court room as the sentencing was read out - not even the prosecution had been seeking the death penalty.

Ms Sandiford had previously claimed in court that she was forced into carrying the drugs to Bali by gangsters who were threatening to hurt one of her children.

Reprieve, which is assisting Ms Sandiford, urged the government to support her appeal.

Investigator Harriet McCulloch said: "Lindsay must file an appeal within the next 14 days and it is vital that the British government do everything possible to support Lindsay's appeal against the death sentence.

"She is clearly not a drug kingpin - she has no money to pay for a lawyer, for the travel costs of defence witnesses or even for essentials like food and water."

Amnesty International used Ms Sandiford's sentence to urge the Indonesian government to scrap the death penalty altogether and impose an official moratorium on all executions.

Foreign Office minister Hugo Swire told the Commons: "We understand that under Indonesian law, Lindsay has at least two further avenues of appeal through the courts as well as an opportunity to apply for presidential clemency should these be unsuccessful."