British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that new police measures will be put in place following disorder on the streets in the wake of the devastating Southport attack that occurred on 29 July.
Starmer held the press conference at 4pm today (1 August) in response to the violence in Southport that followed the tragic stabbings that took place in the Merseyside town.
Three young girls were tragically killed - six-year-old Bebe King, seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine.
The 17-year-old who has been charged with their murders has been named as Axel Rudakabana, the Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC has ruled, as he turns 18 next week.
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He is also being charged with 10 counts of attempted murder.
The Prime Minister met with senior police leaders this afternoon, addressing the events that followed the attack in Southport during the press conference.
Speaking about the riots that ensued in the seaside town, the British leader said that they were 'not protests' and 'not legitimate', saying he wouldn't allow a 'breakdown of law and order'.
Starmer stated: “Make no mistake, whether it’s in Southport, London or Hartlepool these people are showing our country exactly who they are.
“Mosques targeted because they’re mosques, flares thrown at the statue of Winston Churchill, a Nazi salute at the Cenotaph. And so I’ve just held a meeting with senior police and law enforcement leaders, where we resolved to show who we are.
"A country that will not allow understandable fear, to curdle into division and hate in our communities and that will not permit under any circumstances, a breakdown in law and order on our streets.
“Because let’s be very clear about this. It’s not protest. It’s not legitimate. It’s crime. Violent disorder. An assault on the rule of law and the execution of justice.
“And so on behalf of the British people who expect their values and their security to be upheld. We will put a stop to it,” he said on Thursday afternoon.
He then announced a 'national capability' across police forces to combat the violence seen in parts of England - after thanking police officers that tried to control the violence, he acknowledged that violent disorder flares up, regardless of cause or motivation.
Starmer explained: “We make no distinction. Crime is crime. And so, to that end, I can announce today that, following this meeting, we will establish a national capability across police forces to tackle violent disorder.
“These thugs are mobile, they move from community to community. We must have a policing response that can do the same. Shared intelligence, wider deployment of facial recognition technology and preventative action, criminal behaviour orders to restrict their movements, before they can even board a train. In just the same way that we do with football hooligans.
“Let me also say to large social media companies and those who run them: violent disorder, clearly whipped up online, that is also a crime, it’s happening on your premises, and the law must be upheld everywhere.
“That is the single most important duty of government, service rests on security. We will take all necessary action to keep our streets safe,” he stated.
Starmer also called out the actions of a 'tiny, mindless minority in society' after scenes of disorder across the country, saying that the community of Southport have been made to 'suffer twice' following the stabbings.
The Prime Minister said: “There will be a time for questions and we will make sure that the victims and families are at the heart of that process.
“That’s the very least that we owe these families. But we also owe them justice. So, while there’s a prosecution that must not be prejudiced, for them to receive the justice that they deserve the time for answering those questions is not now.
“I remind everyone that the price for a trial that is prejudiced is ultimately paid by the victims and their families, who are deprived of the justice that they deserve.
“Let me now turn to the actions of a tiny, mindless minority in our society, because in the aftermath attack, the community of Southport had to suffer twice.
“A gang of thugs got on trains and buses, went to a community that is not their own, a community grieving the most horrific tragedy, and then proceeded to throw bricks at police officers – police officers who just 24 hours earlier had been having to deal with an attack on children in their community.”
Topics: Crime, Keir Starmer, UK News
Joshua Nair