'Grotesque lie' rioters were acting on behalf of Southport after stabbing, MP says

It is a "grotesque lie" that those who chose to riot following the stabbings in Southport were acting on behalf of those who live there, the town's MP has said.

Patrick Hurley told the House of Commons his constituents were "furious" their grief at the killing of three girls has been used to justify violence that erupted in the weeks following.

Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice Da Silva Aguiar, nine, were killed after a knifeman went into the Taylor Swift dance class they were attending in July and began attacking people.

Eight other children were injured as well as two adults - yoga teacher Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes - both injured were trying to protect the children.

Following the incident disorder broke out in several towns and cities across the country, with police blaming far-right groups and those on social media who spread lies and misinformation about who might be responsible for the attack.

During a debate on violent disorder in the House of Commons, the Labour MP said: "One of the most appalling aspects of the disorder we saw across the country last month was that we continually heard the claim from the thugs involved that they had been driven to commit their acts of violence by the killing of little Bebe, Elise Dot and Alice.

"That claim is a grotesque lie.

"No one is more furious about that lie than the people of Southport, who wanted to just be allowed to deal with their grief and anguish in their own way, and to support the families of those who had been killed."

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper also accused the rioters of “hijacking” grief and committed to a “rapid review of extremism”.

Thanking Mr Hurley for his "powerful words on behalf of his constituents" she said what the rioters had done was "simply a crime".

"I thank him for standing up for the people of Southport, including those families who have had to endure the most unspeakable horror and who are still having to deal with the consequences of what happened," she said.

"He is absolutely right that no one should ever use the terrible attack on three little girls as an excuse for the kinds of violent disorder we have seen.

"I am so sorry that the families and the community he represents have had to endure not just the original attack, but people claiming to be doing things in the name of Southport.

"Clearly, what those people have been doing is not that, but simply crime."

She also pledged “thousands more” neighbourhood police officers and community support officers as part of five “next steps” to improve community cohesion and ensure sufficient public order policing for the future.

she said: “While millions of decent people across the country were praying for bereaved families, a criminal minority of thugs and extremists saw only an opportunity to hijack a town’s grief.

“I’ve been concerned for a long time not enough is being done to counter extremism, including both Islamist extremism and far-right extremism, and there’s been no proper strategy in place since 2015.

“I have ordered a rapid review of extremism to ensure we have the strongest possible response to poisonous ideologies that corrode community cohesion and fray the fabric of our democracy.”

She continued: “The reality is that the co-ordination infrastructure and systems that the police) had to work with were too weak.

“And I’m therefore asking His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services to work quickly with the National Police Chiefs’ Council, the College of Policing and national lead for public order to review the lessons from this summer’s events so we can ensure strong co-ordination and intelligent systems are in place and that there is sufficient public order policing for the future.”

Included in her list of next steps was that Technology Secretary Peter Kyle would “strengthen the requirements for social media companies to take responsibility for the poison proliferated on their platforms with the rollout of the measures in the Online Safety Act”.

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