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Southport killer Axel Rudakubana was taken to hospital in the early hours of today for medical attention but has attended court to be sentenced, sources have said.

The 18-year-old has now appeared in the dock for murdering three young girls in a frenzied knife attack last year.

Rudakubana stabbed and killed the girls, aged between six and nine, with a 20cm-long kitchen knife as he ambushed a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport, Merseyside.

Wearing a surgical face mask while armed with the blade, the then 17-year-old travelled five miles from his family home to the studio where he killed Alice da Silva Aguiar, Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe.

As a trial was set to begin at Liverpool Crown Court on Monday, the teenager pleaded guilty to the murder of the three children as well as the attempted murders of eight others.

He also admitted production of a biological toxin and possession of information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing to commit an act of terrorism. He also pleaded guilty to possession of a knife.

One parent of a child who survived the attack called for him to face a whole-life tariff, saying: “Why should he be spared a whole-life tariff when he hasn’t spared a thought for any of the victims’ families? Life should mean life.”

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Killer said ‘I’m so glad…so happy’ to police after killing children

Prosecutor Deanna Heer KC told Axel Rudakubana’s sentencing: “Having researched atrocities committed by others, the evidence suggests that he set out to emulate them on the 29 July. There is no evidence that he ascribed to any particular political or religious ideology; he wasn’t fighting for a cause.

“His only purpose was to kill, and he targeted the youngest, most vulnerable in order to spread the greatest level of fear and outrage, which he succeeded in doing.

“Whilst under arrest at the police station after the incident, Axel Rudakubana was heard to say, “It’s a good thing those children are dead… I’m so glad… so happy’.”

Holly Evans23 January 2025 12:05

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Search of computer found his ‘long standing obsession with violence’

Ms Heer told the court: “On his computer devices a large number of images and documents were found which demonstrated that he had a long standing obsession with violence, killing and genocide.

“Amongst those documents was a version of the Al-Qaeda training manual, which provides instruction on how to commit acts of terror, including with a knife and with poisons, including ricin.

“When his (Rudakubana) home was searched following his arrest, a number of weapons were recovered including the biological toxin ricin which the defendant had produced in his bedroom.”

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Holly Evans23 January 2025 12:04

Rudakubana carried out ‘pre-meditated’ attack leaving ‘sadistic’ injuries

Southport killer Axel Rudakubana carried out a “pre-meditated, planned knife attack upon multiple victims, principally young girls, intending to kill them,” his sentencing hearing has been told.

Prosecutor Deanna Heer KC told Liverpool Crown Court: “Three children were killed, two of whom suffered particularly horrific injuries which are difficult to explain as anything other than sadistic in nature; and the defendant attempted to kill 10 others, inflicting a number of stab wounds upon them, including to their backs as they tried to escape.”

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Holly Evans23 January 2025 12:03

Southport killer asks to speak to a paramedic due to feeling ‘ill’

Southport killer Axel Rudakubana turned to a dock officer as the opening note was read at his sentencing and said: “I’m not fine, I feel ill.”

He shouted repeatedly: “I need to speak to a paramedic, I feel ill.”

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He added: “You’re not giving me any support judge, I feel ill.”

Holly Evans23 January 2025 12:02

Rudakubana appears in dock

Axel Rudakubana has taken his seat in the dock, just minutes after it emerged he was rushed to hospital in the early hours of this morning.

He is wearing a grey prison issue tracksuit and surgical facemask and is sitting with his head bowed, in front of four dock officers.

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He did not respond when asked to confirm his identity.

Mr Justice Goose has taken his seat and the hearing is about to begin.

Amy-Clare Martin23 January 2025 11:51

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Southport killer rushed to hospital earlier this morning

Southport killer Axel Rudakubana was taken to hospital in the early hours of today for medical attention but is now due to attend court to be sentenced, sources said.

The Times reported that his condition was not deemed serious enough to delay his sentencing hearing.

The reason for him being taken to hospital is unknown.

Holly Evans23 January 2025 11:49

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Families of victims take their seats in the courtroom

Families of some of the victims are seated in the courtroom as we wait for Axel Rudakubana’s sentencing to begin.

Every seat is filled with police, legal teams, victim’s families and waiting members of the press.

Further media are watching proceedings from an overflow courtroom elsewhere in the building.

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Rudakubana has not entered yet entered the dock.

Amy-Clare Martin23 January 2025 11:47

No reason yet given for delay in sentencing

There has been a delay in the sentencing of Axel Rudakubana at Liverpool Crown Court which was due to start at 11am.

No reason for the delay has been given.

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A prison van believed to have Rudakubana inside was pictured arriving at court earlier on Thursday.

Holly Evans23 January 2025 11:44

Watch: Southport killer arrives at court for murder sentencing

Holly Evans23 January 2025 11:36

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Southport killer should spend whole life in prison, says murdered MP’s daughter

The public should have a guarantee that killers such as Axel Rudakubana will spend the rest of their lives in prison, the daughter of murdered MP Sir David Amess has said.

Rudakubana, who will be sentenced today for the murders of three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport, is not expected to receive a whole-life order as he was under 18 when he carried out the attack last summer.

He will receive a life sentence, and former police chief Sir Peter Fahy suggested it was “likely” he would never be released even after the end of the minimum term set by the judge.

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But speaking to ITV’s Good Morning Britain on Thursday, Katie Amess – whose father’s murderer Ali Harbi Ali did receive a whole-life sentence – said this was not good enough.

She said: “There shouldn’t be a likeliness of the man spending the rest of his life in prison, there should be a guarantee that he should never, ever walk free because we can’t have people like that being released.

“And what kind of message does it send to anybody else that might be thinking of doing something and then not have to spend the rest of their lives in prison.”

Whole-life orders can normally only be imposed on criminals aged 21 and over, but can be considered for those aged 18 to 20 in exceptional circumstances.

Holly Evans23 January 2025 11:34

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Sainsbury’s has announced it will cut 3,000 jobs as it shuts down its remaining cafés and closes its patisserie and pizza counters.

The supermarket said the move would “simplify the business”, adding that “the majority of Sainsbury’s most loyal shoppers do not use the cafés regularly”.

Sainsbury’s also said there would be “an estimated 20% reduction in senior management roles over the next few months”.

The retailer is in the midst of a plan to make £1bn of cost savings, and chief executive Simon Roberts said the chain had to had to make “tough choices”.

“We are facing into a particularly challenging cost environment,” said Mr Roberts.

“The decisions we are announcing today are essential to ensure we continue to drive forward our momentum but have also meant some difficult choices impacting our dedicated colleagues in a number of parts of our business.

“We’ll be doing everything we can to support anyone impacted by today’s announcements.”

Adults with ADHD have a shorter life expectancy than those without, a new study has found.

The research, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, found men with ADHD lost an average of 6.78 years of life and women an average of 8.64 years, compared to people who did not have the disorder.

ADHD affects nearly 3% of adults, although most are undiagnosed, the report said. Data was collected from 792 GPs, covering 9.56m people. Researchers identified 30,039 adults diagnosed with ADHD (0.32% of the sample size), who were then matched against 300,390 individuals without the disorder.

It is the first study of its kind to look at life expectancy and ADHD within the UK population.

Researchers believe the difference in life expectancy is because people with ADHD don’t get enough treatment, both for the disorder itself and other health issues.

However, the study did not account for all possible factors, like ethnicity or deprivation, which might also affect life expectancy. It lacked information on the cause of death and there was a potential for an overrepresentation of individuals with higher support needs.

Because ADHD often goes undiagnosed – especially in adults – the new research may overestimate the reduction in life expectancy experienced by people with ADHD.

Read more:
‘Not ill at all’ young people getting diagnosed with ‘fashionable’ ADHD, peer claims

But senior author, Professor Josh Stott from UCL, said the findings were still “deeply concerning”.

“People with ADHD have many strengths and can thrive with the right support and treatment,” he said. “However, they often lack support and are more likely to experience stressful life events and social exclusion, negatively impacting their health and self-esteem.”

The study also raised concerns about the under-diagnosis of the disorder, noting that just 0.32% of adults in the study had been diagnosed with ADHD.

‘Limited access to a diagnosis’

Experts said “unhealthy habits” and “risk-taking behaviour” could be a partial cause.

“We know that ADHD is associated with higher rates of smoking, obesity, cardiovascular disease and cancer among other health problems,” said Prof Philip Asherson from King’s College London.

“Adults with ADHD are more likely to engage in unhealthy habits such as binge eating or smoking, and risk-taking behaviour. There may also be biological links with autoimmune and other physical health disorders.

“ADHD is increasingly recognised as a serious condition in adults associated with poor health outcomes.”

Services to support adults with ADHD, and to improve both physical and mental health outcomes, lag behind what is available for other common conditions, such as anxiety, depression, hypertension and obesity, he said.

“Of particular concern are limited access to diagnosis and treatment including psychosocial support,” said Prof Asherson.

“Until this is addressed the shorter life expectancy demonstrated in this study is likely to continue.”

A UK Barrister has said the law “should be changed” on handing life sentences to those under 18, as Axel Rudakubana is set to avoid a whole life sentence for the Southport attack.

Speaking to GB News, Steven Barrett said that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer “should have used his majority” in Parliament to change the law ahead of Rudakubana’s sentencing.

FULL STORY HERE.

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David Lammy has been accused of misleading the House of Commons over the crumbling Chagos deal by a member of his own party.

The government’s agreement to hand over the Chagos Islands – including the joint UK-US airbase on Diego Garcia – to Mauritius has been plagued by issues since it was announced in October, with concerns Donald Trump could veto the deal and the new Mauritian government demanding further concessions from Britain.

But now there also appears to be growing discontent from within Labour itself.

Speaking at a meeting at Portcullis House for MPs to engage with indigenous Chagossian people, Peter Lamb, Labour MP for Crawley, claimed there is “certainly evidence” that statements made in the Commons by the foreign secretary “do not appear to be true”, referencing claims that the government has engaged with the Chagossians throughout the process of striking a deal.

The comments made by Mr Lamb – whose constituency is home to the largest community of Chagossians in the UK – highlight the fractious state of relations over the deal, the future of which is becoming increasingly uncertain.

On October 7 2024, the foreign secretary told the House of Commons: “Of course we kept the Chagossians informed all along the way.”

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Chagossian Voices – a campaign group representing indigenous people originating from the islands – said they have not met with Mr Lammy, and that Stephen Doughty, who has met with the group twice since the deal was agreed, refused to discuss the negotiations.

Mr Doughty met members of the Chagossian community on 30 September and 3 October and FCDO sources have insisted officials have been in regular contact with Chagossians on a range of issues. But it is understood that Mr Doughty told those present at the meetings that he could not speak about the negotiations.

Jean-Francois Nellan, who was present at both meetings, said the second was just ten minutes long, while the first, he said, lasted thirty minutes.

While the foreign secretary has claimed that Chagossian interests are “at the heart of the deal”, testimonies from more than ten indigenous campaigners in attendance at the meeting made it clear they don’t agree.

Carl Buckley, a lawyer working with Chagossian Voices, told the meeting: “We have a secretary of state who is on the record saying, all of these [people] have been consulted when they have not.

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“There is a refusal to correct the record, there is a refusal to respond to correspondence that they have sent. There is an utter refusal to engage with these people. So their humanity, their individuality, is being ignored.

“They were forcibly removed from their homes, but they are again being ignored now over 50 years later when we are discussing their homeland.”

Responding, Mr Lamb said: “I’ve forwarded their [Chagossian Voices] correspondence again and asked for a response. Freedom of Information requests are going largely unanswered, the argument being national security, which I find very difficult with the questions that I was asking.”

He added: “There is certainly evidence that statements made in the house by the foreign secretary do not appear to be true.”

Asked about Mr Lamb’s remarks, a spokesperson for Chagossian Voices told The Independent: “There has been no engagement. We never met with Lammy. And we only spoke to Stephen Doughty after the negotiations were over.”

The foreign secretary has previously argued that “it is hard to get one view” from the Chagossians as there are “Chagossians in the Seychelles, in Mauritius and in the United Kingdom”, saying the government “will continue to do all we can to support them”.

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Critics of the deal are concerned about the future of the joint UK-US airbase on Diego Garcia, and also the potential for China to gain access to the islands.

Mr Lammy had agreed a deal with Mauritius, but following a change of government there, the new Mauritian prime minister Navin Ramgoolam rejected it as “not good enough” and demanded more from the UK.

Shadow Armed Forces Minister, Mark Francois, said: “The foreign secretary’s benighted Chagos deal just staggers from one disaster to another. Not only are president Trump’s team clearly very unhappy with it, but now even Labour backbenchers are speaking out against it too.

“If David Lammy had any sense he would stop digging and abandon the whole bonkers plan, sooner rather than later.”

But the foreign secretary has insisted that it is “a good deal” which secures the long-term future of the airbase. He has also pointed out that the International Court of Justice ruled that the islands belong to Mauritius.

A government spokesperson said: “The negotiations were between the UK and Mauritius with our priority being to secure the full operation of the base on Diego Garcia.

“We recognise the importance of the islands to Chagossians and have worked to ensure this agreement reflects their interests. The UK government, under both the previous and current administration, has been engaged with Chagossians at both official and ministerial level during negotiations which first started in November 2022.

“As part of the agreement, we will finance a new trust fund for Mauritius to use in support of the Chagossian community. We will work with Mauritius to start a new programme of visits for Chagossians to the Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia. And Mauritius will be free to develop a programme of resettlement on the islands, other than Diego Garcia.”

EU relations minister Nick Thomas-Symonds has ruled out joining a pan-European trade agreement, saying the UK does not “currently have plans” to sign up to the scheme.

On Wednesday, the EU’s new trade chief Maros Sefcovic told the BBC he was open to Britain joining the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Convention (PEM) as part of a post-Brexit “reset”.

The arrangement allows for tariff-free trade of some goods from across dozens of countries in Europe and North Africa.

At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Mr Sefcovic told the BBC’s economics editor Faisal Islam the idea had not been “precisely formulated” by London and the “ball is in the UK’s court”.

The BBC understands the UK government has begun consultations with business over the benefits of the PEM plan that could help cut red tape and improve trade. No final decision has been made yet.

Asked about the agreement in the House of Commons, Thomas-Symonds said he welcomed the “positive, constructive tone” from the EU trade commissioner.

“We are always looking for ways to reduce barriers of trade, but within our manifesto red lines, because we take a pragmatic view as to where the national interest lies.

“We don’t currently have any plans to join PEM, and we are not going to provide a running commentary on every comment that’s made.”

Labour’s manifesto said that there would be “no return to the single market, the customs union or freedom of movement”.

The minister’s comment prompted anger from the Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, who recently called for the UK to join a new customs deal with the EU, allowing tariff- free trade between the two blocs.

It would also restrict the UK’s ability to strike trade deals with other countries.

Sir Ed accused the government of an “act of economic negligence,” adding: “It is alarming that the government is happy to negotiate with China but won’t even look at a better trading arrangement with our closest neighbours in Europe.

“It is time for a proper UK-EU customs arrangement so we can strengthen our negotiations with Donald Trump, cut the red tape on our businesses and grow the economy.”

Speaking in the Commons, Conservative shadow cabinet office minister Alex Burghart said Mr Sefcovic was “a better guide to what is going on than the British government”.

Another Conservative MP, John Cooper, said joining the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Convention would turn the UK “once again into rule-takers and not rule-makers”.

He asked Thomas-Symonds to rule out signing up to an agreement that could see the UK “taking EU rules” and instead “strike out in the world and do new deals with America and around the Pacific-Rim”.

The minister replied that it was not a “binary choice” and the government would not “choose between allies. We look to deepen all our relationships.”

Britons say Nigel Farage would be the ‘best prime minister’ in a humiliating blow to Sir Keir Starmer.

With Kemi Badenoch trailing in third place, YouGov’s voting intention poll sends the clearest signal yet that voters are disaffected with the two main parties.

Reform UK has bagged a major win as Nigel Farage has been voted best prime minister

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Badenoch and Lib Dem leader Ed Davey tussled for third place, garnering nine and eight per cent of the vote respectively.

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In a further blow to Starmer, just half of 2024 Labour voters (50 per cent) say he would make the best prime minister from the list of four, although few (two to eight per cent) opt for an alternative, with most of the rest (34 per cent) answering “don’t know”.

Farage, by contrast, has the overwhelming support of his own voters, with 81 per cent backing him for best PM. Again, few (nought to three per cent) prefer one of the other offerings, with the rest (15 per cent) unsure.

The bad news for Starmer comes as he faces serious questions over the grooming gangs scandal and attempts to revive a sluggish economy.

Even if he manages to restore public confidence in the former, the latter will be a much more formidable challenge as Chancellor Reeves looks set to break her own fiscal rules amid rising borrowing costs and global volatility.

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All this should be an open goal for the Conservatives but they are still trying to find their feet under Badenoch.

Farage’s message to voters, meanwhile, appears to be cutting through with voters, polling consistently suggests.

He looks set to benefit further from the political winds across the Atlantic.

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Farage looks set to benefit further from the political winds across the Atlantic

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Farage said as much in a speech at his pre-inauguration party for the incoming president in Washington DC on Sunday, telling Republicans that he believes he will win the next election.

Farage called Trump’s 2024 victory the start of a “political tide that is going to sweep across the Western world”, adding that Americans were “lucky” to have the 45th President return to the Oval Office for another term.

The Clacton MP, who joined a number of attendees at the party hosted by Brexit-backing businessman Arron Banks and Andy Wigmore, said: “I honestly believe that what you’ve seen here is going to be a political tide that is going to sweep across the Western world.

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“There’s much else happening across Europe too, including in the set of islands that I come from, where there is a new insurgent political party led by a maverick from the outside.

“And who knows? I actually do believe that we will win the next General Election. I do believe I can become the next Prime Minister.

“I just hope it happens quickly while Donald Trump is still in office.”