Florida has stayed the execution of Manuel Valle to allow a hearing on whether the use of a new execution drug will cause him unnecessary pain.

Gayland Bradford, a prisoner with severe mental impairment has been executed in Texas using drugs produced by the Danish company Lundbeck

The Copenhagen-based pharmaceutical company Lundbeck has refused to submit testimony to a US court opposing the use of its drugs in executions.

The legal charity Reprieve has welcomed the announcement by the Department for Business that it is introducing controls on the export of execution drugs to the US.