This afternoon, the Southport killer Axel Rudakubana has been sentenced to a minimum of 52 years in jail – for the murder of three young girls and the attempted murder of ten other people at a dance class last summer. The 18-year-old murderer also admitted to producing ricin and being in possession of terrorist material and a knife. The harrowing details of the case were heard in court earlier today – from the events of the attack to Rudakubana’s lack of remorse afterwards, reminding the country of an attack that shocked the nation.
Many of those following the case have taken to social media to express their shock at the killings – with the murderer’s sentence swiftly referred to the Attorney General’s office under the Unduly Lenient Scheme after it was slammed as being too moderate. Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has announced the Tories will explore ways to amend the law to award whole life sentences to under 18s. And the court detail has even prompted calls to bring back capital punishment, including from one new MP. Reform UK’s Rupert Lowe took to Twitter this afternoon after Rudakubana’s sentencing to call for a ‘national debate on the death penalty’, tweeting:
It is my opinion that now is the time for a national debate on the use of the death penalty in exceptional circumstances. This is an exceptional circumstance.
How interesting. And Lowe is not the only one in his parliamentary party that is in favour of capital punishment. In 2023, the Spectator revealed that Lee Anderson – at the time a Conservative Member of Parliament – was in favour of that particular method of punishment. Today, Anderson has tweeted a picture of a noose, writing: ‘No apologies here. This is what is required.’ So with 40 per cent of the party’s parliamentary group in favour of a debate on the issue, will this now become Reform policy?
No Apologies Here
— Lee Anderson MP (@LeeAndersonMP_) January 23, 2025
This is what is required! pic.twitter.com/IRACG4is0a
Not yet, it transpires. A Reform party spokesperson told Steerpike this afternoon: ‘Rupert is entitled to his own view – but that is not the party’s view.’ Given the national horror over the Southport attack, Mr S is rather sure that Lowe is not the only politician considering this rather drastic form of punishment…
Katy Balls, Isabel Hardman and James Heale discuss the political reaction to the Southport sentencing on the latest Coffee House Shots podcast:
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