Keir Starmer has vowed to “leave no stone unturned” to find out how Southport killer Axel Rudakubana was able to murder three little girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.
The prime minister said “the state failed” to protect nine-year-old Alice da Silva Bebe King, 6, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, on July 29 last year.
At Liverpool Crown Court this morning, Rudakubana pleaded guilty to murdering the three youngsters, as well as the attempted murders of eight other children, class instructor Leanne Lucas and businessman John Hayes.
It has now emerged that he was referred to the government anti-extremism scheme Prevent three times before the murders, amid concerns over his fixation with violence.
Starmer said: “The news that the vile and sick Southport killer will be convicted is welcome.
“It is also a moment of trauma for the nation and there are grave questions to answer as to how the state failed in its ultimate duty to protect these young girls.
“Britain will rightly demand answers. And we will leave no stone unturned in that pursuit.
“At the centre of this horrific event, there is still a family and community grief that is raw; a pain that not even justice can ever truly heal.
“Although no words today can ever truly convey the depths of that pain, I want the families to know that our thoughts are with them and everyone in Southport affected by this barbaric crime. The whole nation grieves with them.”
