In a sombre and impassioned statement delivered today, Prime Minister Keir Starmer addressed the nation on the findings of the Southport public inquiry, following the brutal murders of three young girls last summer.
Starmer described the killings as a “senseless, barbaric” act and committed to making Southport a “line in the sand” for Britain’s approach to security and justice.
Starmer highlighted that the murders marked a pivotal moment in the nation’s understanding of terrorism, noting that Britain faces a “new threat” distinct from traditional organised terror groups like Al-Qaeda. He said the growing prevalence of “loners, misfits, young men in their bedrooms” driven by extreme online content underscores the evolving nature of terrorism.
“The extreme nature of the violence, the meticulous planning, and the targeting of children in a place of joy and safety clearly intended to terrorise,” he stated, adding, “If the law needs to change to recognise this new and dangerous threat, then we will change it – and quickly.”
The Prime Minister expressed frustration at systemic failures, citing that the perpetrator had been referred to the Prevent programme three times but failed to meet the threshold for intervention.
He vowed to review the UK’s counter-extremism measures, ensuring they are fit to tackle modern threats. “We can’t have a national security system that fails to tackle people who are a danger to our values, our security, our children,” he said.
Starmer also addressed the online platforms enabling access to extreme content, calling it unacceptable that “with just a few clicks, people can watch video after horrific video.” He committed to reviewing legislation governing online content to better protect vulnerable individuals and prevent radicalisation.
The Prime Minister promised transparency and accountability throughout the public inquiry, stating, “We will leave no stone unturned… If any shortcomings are holding back the ability of this country to keep its citizens and children safe, I will find them and root them out.”
Reflecting on his past as a prosecutor who exposed institutional failures, he pledged to apply the same tenacity to addressing the systemic issues raised by the Southport tragedy.
Starmer closed his remarks with a call for national unity and a commitment to action. “This time, it will be different. Southport will be a line in the sand. We will honour those three little girls and deliver, not just justice, but the change that the people and families of Southport deserve.”
I’m not sure you can class this as a new type of terrorism, this was a profoundly unwell/evil person who simple wanted to hurt and kill people. No difference from all the other sick killer, these individuals simply pop up…you take a psychopath and manage them badly and this is what occurs…it’s regular as clockwork I’m afraid. Sadly in this case all the signs were in place, his parents were terrified of him and what he was going to do and constantly contacted the police..he was referred to prevent 3 times…but it did fuck all good, because he was not a terrorist or had an ideology he was just profoundly sick and wanted to hurt and kill people…he should have been in identified assessed and popped in a secure forensic psychiatric unit for the rest of his life.
Sorry but if you are planning a ricin attack you are a terrorist.
Unfortunately as we are now not getting a trial we will never know the full details and motivations.
There is more to this someone with a mental health problem.
Nope…terrorists have to have an ideological, political aim for it to be terrorism…many nutters have undertaken mass killings for no other reasons than they want to..they are not terrorists they are sick or evil individuals…it’s not the method of killing that defines terrorism…knife, gun, bomb, poison it’s the reason…a man who drives a car into a crowed because he simply wants to wants to kill people is not a terrorist a man who drives a car into a crowed because he has a specific political view that he is promoting through driving the car into the crowed is a terrorist..
It’s not the means that define it’s the reason.
Both things can be true. You can have the mentally ill terrorists who adopt a political cause to kill. You can quibble over if he murdered under the badge of a political group or if he was just individually motivated to an action by them.
If you’re motivated to perform terroristic actions quite simply you’re a terrorist.
I’m not sure there are that many sane people who walk into a Pizza restaurant and then detonate a bomb. Israel was full of them until recently.
Given Starmers background this is a bit rich really. Not is it terrorism. It’s the incompetence of the services that let the man roam.
To be fair Starmer has trouble deciding what a women is, expecting him to call a man who watches beheading videos and downloads a terrorist handbook such would be a stretch. Word from prison is that he attended Muslim prayers!
It’s not terrorism. It’s a man who’s very mentally ill who should have been referred for urgent mental health treatment a long time ago. Now he needs to be put into a secure mental health facility, either for life or until he can be cured and brought back to normal to the point he’s no threat to anyone.
Chances are, it’ll need to be for life.
Sadly Steve you really don’t ever cure that, you can manage the risk, but if you let a person like that live in the community there is always a realistic risk they will murder a few people..happens all the time, reviewed and investigated loads of such cases… not quite as high profile, as the victims are usually people they know or who are related to them and it’s not highly reported.
The only thing you can do to removed the risk is to remove them from society, unless in a profoundly well controlled situation…
“Never let a crisis go to waste”
With this you can be sure he will want more and more power for the state, expect more and more spy power and internet control.
But i suspect Marxist ideology and Communist manifesto will be easily accessible and significant teaching in British Universities…
That’s a bit dark Alex, positive thoughts mate positive thoughts….personally I think it’s just deflecting from the fact that our forensics mental health services are a joke and our wider community mental health services that actually pick up the people who need forensic mental health services is an even bigger joke.
Terror definition: an intense overpowering fear. What has happened here is that fear, resentment and rejection have been allowed to take root and grow in a young, vulnerable, isolated adolescent mind. In earlier times Axel would likely have been safeguarded by joining the Scouts, attending Sunday school, membership of the local rugby club; he would have been exposed to creative, formative influences; self respect, friendship, resilience, a sense of belonging, the importance of grace under pressure. Instead he was left to be moulded and fed evil examples by the internet and social media until it overwhelmed him and he became unhinged. They say you are what you eat – this is even more true when applied to emotions. I’m sorry but the Prevent Program’s criteria that a potential terrorist must have an ‘ideology’ is complete boll&&x. Gang warfare, misogyny and terrorism don’t happen by accident. What has gone wrong here is the neglect in the formation of a young mind and heart.
It’s dangerous to be right when the relevant authorities are wrong my friend. ❤️☮️
When Southport first happened, nothing to see here, not terrorism.
Now it is.
I’d have liked him to comment on the Chatham Soldier stabbed umpteen times, that was nicely swept under the carpet and of course has nothing to do with terrorism or radical Islam attacking westerners.
New terror threat??? Has he been out the country that much? Or perhaps 2 tier justice blinds you to certain crimes or certain types of criminal.
Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. 🫶✌️
We immunise our children against harmful diseases; give them a taster to create a ‘memory’ of struggle and victory which they can refer to when the real disease assaults them; build resilience, immunity. Traditionally we read our children fables and fairy stories to familiarise them with evil and fear before they meet it in real life; teach them that goodness, faith, courage and comradeship can defeat it. You can’t ‘prevent’ evil but you can immunise against it. More laws and definitions of terrorism are not to going to solve this problem. What we need are a few adults running the country.
There is much that isn’t known to the public about this individual and his motivations. A full forensic formulation will take time but is probably happening wherever he now is.
It’s not unique to the UK at all, but services are created in silos, each with their own objectives targets and funding. Each unsurprisingly then seeks to stay in its silo doing what it is tasked and monitored on doing (they don’t have the resources to take on stuff outside their remit apart from anything else). If something falls outside that remit, they seek to pass it on to others. Which is fine when needs are clear cut and conveniently conform to the services that have been put in place. But when people are irritatingly individual and do not conform with any of the services that are put in place around them, then they have a nasty habit of falling between the cracks between services just as seems to have happened here.
Sure this gap can now be closed by changing the role of one service or another to meet this need. Then there will be another issue somewhere else and it will continue indefinitely. Not sure there is really a solution to that as it would be a total free for all if you didn’t define what services should and should not do.
British people are now what we would call “not very smart.” Once an open minded, free speaking people, a center of learning, common sense, bravery, patriotism and military prowess, now relegated to A COMPLETE JOKE. Pack it up and go home chaps, you’ve shot yourself in the foot with this open borders lark, and you cannot turn back the clock. Suggest you pay Trump to defend your country and give up on this military spending nonsense and focus on what you’re good at – mass uncontrolled middle eastern migration from countries that share NOTHING in common with British values.
Good luck – last one out turn the light off.