Family of MP Sir David Amess ‘still without answers’ four years after his murder

The daughter of murdered MP Sir David Amess said her family are “still without answers”, four years after the veteran politician was stabbed to death, as she continues to call for a public inquiry.

Father-of-five Sir David, 69, was hosting a surgery at a church in his Southend West constituency when he was attacked on October 15, 2021.

His killer, Ali Harbi Ali, had been referred to the Government’s counter-terror programme Prevent seven years earlier.

He was found guilty of Sir David’s murder after just 18 minutes of deliberation at the Old Bailey, and was handed a whole-life prison term in 2022.

Sir David’s daughter, Katie Amess, 40, said: “As we mark four years since my father was so brutally taken from us, my family and I are still without answers as to how his killer was ever allowed to wreak such havoc when he was known to the Prevent and counter-terrorism authorities.

“Despite being flagged as a risk, there was just one meeting with him, over a McDonald’s coffee, where inexplicably he was allowed to drift, having convinced in that one meeting that he was not a terrorist.

“It is a failure of the state to keep its citizens safe, their Government’s first duty.

“That failure to act cost my father his life and it should be a given that where anyone is killed in these circumstances, let alone a dedicated public servant like my father, there should be a public inquiry.”

She continued: “We do not understand why the Government are so reluctant to order one and I will not give up until we have that.”

Ms Amess said the Prime Minister had asked the family to work with independent Prevent commissioner David Anderson KC’s review to see if he could help.

“By his own admission, his (Lord Anderson’s) report has failed to get to the bottom of things and answer the fundamental questions our family has been asking from day one,” Ms Amess said.

“The Prime Minister promised that if Lord Anderson could not provide those answers, he would meet us himself.

“That meeting must now take place, and the Government must order a full public inquiry into what happened and what must be done to ensure no family ever endures what we have.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “Sir David Amess’s murder was an awful tragedy, and our heartfelt thoughts continue to be with his family and friends.

“In the years since this cowardly attack, there have been several reviews asking how this could have been avoided, and we have seen significant improvements to the Prevent programme as well as stronger protections for MPs.

“We understand that the Amess family are still looking for answers and we take this incredibly seriously.

“While we do not think a public inquiry would unearth any information that has not already been assessed, we have confirmed that we will further scrutinise all the reviews that have taken place over the last few years.

“We very much hope this will help the family to get the answers they deserve.”