State failures in Southport child-killer case ‘frankly leaps off page’ – Starmer

The Prime Minister has said the failure of state institutions in the case of child-killer Axel Rudakubana “frankly leaps off the page”.

The 18-year-old pleaded guilty on Monday to murdering three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in July.

Despite contact with state agencies such as Prevent, authorities failed to stop the attack which claimed the lives of Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, Bebe King, six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven.

The Home Secretary announced an inquiry into the case on Monday evening, saying the country needed “independent answers” on Prevent and other agencies’ contact with the “extremely violent” Rudakubana and “how he came to be so dangerous”.

Addressing the nation on Tuesday, Sir Keir Starmer said: “As part of the inquiry launched by the Home Secretary yesterday, I will not let any institution of the state deflect from their failure – failure which in this case, frankly, leaps off the page.”

Published: 21/01/2025 by Radio NewsHub