Yvette Cooper has told the family of murdered MP Sir David Amess there will not be a public inquiry into his killing. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will shortly fly out to Saudi Arabia, before talks between Ukrainian and American officials begin.
Monday 10 March 2025 10:30, UK
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As we reported in the last hour, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has rejected calls from the family of murdered MP Sir David Amess for a public inquiry into the killing.
Cooper said it was “hard to see how an inquiry would be able to go beyond” terrorist killer Ali Harbi Ali’s trial and the recently published Prevent learning review.
Amess was killed at a constituency surgery in Southend-on-Sea in 2021.
The family are now holding a news conference – we’ll bring you updates here in the Politics Hub.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has rejected calls from the family of murdered MP Sir David Amess for a public inquiry into the killing, in a letter addressed to his widow and daughter.
In the letter to Lady Julia Amess and Katie Amess, Cooper said it was “hard to see how an inquiry would be able to go beyond” terrorist killer Ali Harbi Ali’s trial and the recently published Prevent learning review.
Lady Amess said Sir Keir Starmer should “go away and reconsider the government’s position” ahead of the family’s meeting with the prime minister and the home secretary on Wednesday.
Katie Amess said Cooper’s words were “adding salt onto an open wound”, describing her reaction to the letter as “sadness, betrayal, pain and just heartbreak really”.
Ali had been referred to Prevent seven years before he killed Amess on 15 October 2021, but his case was closed in 2016.
The so-called Islamic State fanatic stabbed the veteran MP at his constituency surgery in Essex and was sentenced to a whole-life order in 2022.
Amess’s family received a letter rejecting their call for a public inquiry into the case on Thursday.
The father of Molly Russell said he and other bereaved parents are “losing trust” in Technology Secretary Peter Kyle over the rollout of online safety laws in the UK.
Ian Russell said “nothing’s changed” in terms of online safety in the more than seven years since his daughter Molly chose to end her life aged 14, in 2017, after viewing harmful content on social media.
The Online Safety Act has passed into law, and from this year will require tech platforms to follow new Ofcom-issued codes of practice to keep users safe online, particularly children, with large fines and site blockages among the penalties for those who break the rules.
But many campaigners have criticised Ofcom’s approach to the new laws, warning it has taken too long to implement, gives tech firms too much scope to regulate themselves, and that the laws are not strong enough to prevent online harm occurring.
Speaking to LBC, Russell, who along with his family set up the Molly Rose Foundation in his daughter’s name after her death, said: “The government haven’t really done anything. This is a really tough thing… Seven years down the road, I would say nothing’s changed, in my experience.
“Nothing of significance has changed. The sort of content that Molly saw, that a coroner concluded led to the end of her life, in a more than minimal way, is still easily available online.”
He added: “I’m losing trust with Peter Kyle, and I know all the bereaved parents that I’ve connected with are losing trust,” Russell said.
“Some more than me. Some are really angry.”
A man has been charged after climbing up the tower of Big Ben, the Metropolitan Police has said.
Daniel Day, 29, of Palmerston Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, faces charges of intentionally or recklessly causing a public nuisance and trespassing on a protected site.
He will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court later today.
Police were called to reports of a man climbing up Elizabeth Tower at 7.24am on Saturday.
The man was carrying a Palestinian flag and remained barefoot on a ledge for more than 16 hours before being lifted to the ground in a cherry picker just after midnight.
Westminster Bridge was forced to close to traffic during the morning, as tourists in central London stood around watching the spectacle.
Police said specialist officers worked with the fire brigade “to bring this incident to a close as quickly as possible whilst minimising risk to life”.
As we reported earlier today, Russia has expelled one British diplomat and the spouse of another, accusing them of spying.
The pair were accused of engaging in intelligence activity under cover of the embassy in Moscow.
They have been ordered to leave the country within two weeks, the Russian news agency Tass said, citing the country’s FSB security agency.
“The Federal Security Service’s counter-intelligence operations exposed the unreported intelligence presence of the United Kingdom under the cover of the country’s embassy in Moscow,” an FSB statement cited by Tass reads.
Responding to this, the Foreign Office has condemned the decision as “malicious” and “baseless”.
A spokesperson said: “This is not the first time that Russia has made malicious and baseless accusations against our staff.”
The government is doing its best to lay the groundwork for cuts to welfare spending – ahead of what is surely set to be a major internal row in the Labour Party.
The total bill for working-age health benefits has surged since the pandemic, rising from £36bn just before COVID to £48bn last year, and is forecast to grow to nearly £65bn in the next five years.
The number of people claiming long-term sickness benefits – around 2.8 million – makes up nearly a third of the total number of working age individuals out of work, and is expected to increase to four million by the end of the decade.
That huge and rising bill is under real pressure given the strain on government finances ahead of the spring statement due later this month.
With the chancellor’s room to manoeuvre constrained by her promises not to raise taxes or break her fiscal rules and borrow to fund day-to-day spending – it looks like billions of pounds in spending cuts are on the cards and the Department of Work and Pensions is clearly a key target.
Ministers plan to give people living near power infrastructure hundreds of pounds off their bills a year as part of an overhaul of planning rules.
Housing and planning minister Alex Norris told Sky News Breakfast that “communities needs to share the benefits” of the UK’s move towards clean energy.
“And if you know, if you’re making that sacrifice of having some of the infrastructure in your community, you should get some of the money back. So we’re making that commitment, £250-a-year if you are near those pylons,” he says.
“So we think that’s a fair balance between people who are making that commitment to the country themselves, well they should be rewarded for that.”
Ministers are also looking to slash the number of official bodies that get a say in planning decisions in a drive to cut red tape.
The Times reported that government plans will set out that households living within half a kilometre of new or upgraded power systems such as pylons could get access to a bill discount scheme equivalent to an annual payment of £250 over 10 years.
It comes as officials are set to consult on removing Sport England, the Theatres Trust and the Garden History Society from the list of bodies legally required to be consulted on planning decisions, while the scope of others who get to give input is set to be narrowed.
Angela Rayner has said reforms are needed to ensure the system is “sensible and balanced” as the government has pledged to build 1.5 million homes this parliament.
👉Listen to Politics At Jack And Sam’s on your podcast app👈
Sky News’ deputy political editor Sam Coates and Politico’s Anne McElvoy have their guide to the day ahead in British politics.
With Zelenskyy heading to Saudi Arabia to join US sponsored peace talks in Saudi Arabia, Sam and Anne assess the UK’s response to any concessions Ukraine might be made to make to Russia.
And with Mark Carney waiting in the wings to take over from Prime Minister Trudeau in Canada, how will his premiership differ and how will he respond to Trump’s threat of tariffs?
Domestically, Labour’s wish for economic growth is well known, but do their planning reforms go far enough to get it?
And speaking of Reform – as their internal rows rumble on, Anne and Sam discuss what the latest intervention from an unnamed KC means for the party.
WhatsApp on 07511 867 633 or email us: jackandsam@sky.uk
Alex Norris, the housing minister, just joined Wilfred Frost on Sky News Breakfast to discuss reports the UK is advising Ukraine on peace talks.
We understand that Jonathan Powell, Sir Keir Starmer’s national security adviser, travelled to Ukraine this weekend to brief Volodymyr Zelenskyy before talks with the US on Tuesday.
Norris says: “Our role in this is to make sure that Ukraine is in the strongest position possible.
“Peace will only be secured through that strength, that’s why we did the aid package that we did last week, and then alongside that we’ve been doing significant diplomatic efforts with our European counterparts.”
The minister says he is “pleased to see” what’s happening in Saudi Arabia this week, describing it as a “big step forward”.
Zelenskyy will shortly fly out to Saudi Arabia, where he will meet with Mohammed bin Salman before talks between Ukrainian and American officials begin.
“We collaborate as the UK government with the Ukraine government at lots of levels, and so I don’t think it’s a surprise that our people are talking to their people.
“I think that’s the right thing to do.”
The UK is advising Ukraine on handling peace talks with the United States, it is understood.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will shortly fly out to Saudi Arabia, where he will meet with Mohammed bin Salman before talks between Ukrainian and American officials begin.
President Zelenskyy himself will not attend these talks – weeks after a fiery Oval Office exchange with US President Donald Trump – but his chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, will.
We understand that Jonathan Powell, Sir Keir Starmer’s national security adviser, travelled to Ukraine this weekend to brief Zelenskyy before talks with the US on Tuesday.
Powell is understood to be advising Zelenskyy to make clear he is “responding to American requests in order to highlight to Trump that Russia is the main obstacle to peace”, The Times reports.
Zelenskyy said talks with Powell were “highly productive”.
Starmer is also trying to convince Trump to resume intelligence sharing with Ukraine, after this was closed off suddenly last week.
The UK is also said to believe this is a more feasible request to make to the US than the resumption of military aid to Ukraine.
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