Jo Cox died because of her 'very strong political views', says husband

Video report by ITV News Political Correspondent Carl Dinnen

The husband of murdered MP Jo Cox believes she was killed because of her 'very strong political views'.

In his first interview since her death, Brendan Cox said Jo was "very worried" about the political culture in the UK.

He added: "I think she was very worried the language was coarsening, that people were being driven to take more extreme positions, that people didn't work with each other as individuals.

"On issues it was all much too tribal and unthinking."

He said that Jo was "particularly worried about the direction of politics, around creating division and playing on people's worst fears rather than their best instincts".

Mr Cox also thanked the public for their support, which he described as "off the scale".

He said the "outpouring of love" from the public has helped his two children come to terms with the loss of their mother.

"The outpouring of love has helped the children see what they're feeling, other people are feeling.

"The grief they feel isn't abnormal. They feel it more acutely, more personally and more painfully, but their mother was loved by lots of people and therefore it's okay to be upset and okay for them to cry."

The public has so far raised over £1 million in donations after a fundraising page was set up in Mrs Cox's memory - an act Mr Cox said was "incredible".

"It gives us some hope that something positive can come out of something that is so horrendous", he added.

"We never anticipated anything like this.

"The public reaction has been off the scale and the two things that I've been very focused on is how we support and protect the children, and how we make sure something good comes out of this".

Parliament was recalled on Monday to hear MPs pay tribute to their former colleague, and several parliamentarians broke down in tears.

Brendan Cox said: "It was very humbling to see everybody together.

"In some ways, it wasn't surprising because when people meet Jo she had this magnetism and energy and humanity so that people liked her and loved her.

"It was magnificent to see Parliament speaking as one. All the contributions touched on something we know and love about Jo - from the personal to the funny, to the political.

"It wasn't people getting up and giving their condolences, it was people who knew Jo and who loved her and could talk about what she meant to them", he added.

The 41-year-old Labour MP for Batley and Spen died after being shot and stabbed in her constituency last week.