British politician’s murder was terrorist attack, says police

Bloomberg

UK Home Secretary Priti Patel ordered a review of police security for members of Parliament after Conservative MP David Amess was fatally stabbed at a meeting in his constituency.
The attack revives questions about the safety of lawmakers meeting face-to-face with residents in their districts, usually with little security. A 25-year-old UK national was arrested on suspicion of murder, which authorities declared as a terrorist incident. “The early investigation has revealed a potential motivation linked to extremism,” Metropolitan Police said in a statement. “It is believed that he acted alone, and we are not seeking anyone else in connection with the incident at this time.”
It’s the second time in five years that a British MP has been murdered in public after Jo Cox was killed while attending such a so-called constituency surgery in 2016.

Another Labour MP, Stephen Timms, suffered injuries during a stabbing in 2010.

The events are held by most MPs in their constituency once a week, usually on a Friday, and allow residents to ask them to take up issues on their behalf.
“The Home Secretary has asked all police forces to review security arrangements for MPs with immediate effect and will provide updates in due course,” Kelsey Stubbs, a spokesperson for Patel, said in a statement.
Tory MP Tobias Ellwood, chair of the Defense Select Committee, said Saturday that face-to-face meetings between MPs and the public should be suspended while the investigation continues, and until new safety protocols are put forward.
“We’ve got to think not just of the safety of MPs of course, there were other people in that church that would have been traumatized, and lives were in danger, not knowing how the events would unfold,” Ellwood said on Times Radio.
In 2000, former Liberal Democrat MP Nigel Jones was attacked with a Samurai sword at his constituency office and his assistant Andrew Pennington died trying to defend him.
Veteran Labour MP and former foreign secretary Margaret Beckett called for a review and said she wasn’t sure if she’d return to doing in-person meetings with constituents.
“I will have to take advice about it,” she said on Times Radio on Friday. “I think we all should.”
MPs could be advised to limit meetings with constituents to Parliament, where visitors must pass through a metal detector. However, moves to scale back direct contact with voters may be greeted with dismay by some politicians who relish the opportunity for face-to-face meetings.