Keir Starmer faces fierce PMQs grilling TODAY amid outrage over Henry Nowak murder
Keir Starmer addresses the murder of Henry Nowak, saying he felt 'sick' watching the bodycam footage of the 18-year-old's arrest
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Sir Keir Starmer is set to face a grilling from MPs today amid outrage over Henry Nowak's murder and the latest tranche of the Lord Peter Mandelson files being released on Monday.
Last night, huge crowds descended upon Southampton Constabulary as anti-police protests broke out over "two-tier justice" accusations in light of Mr Nowak's murder in December, where he died in handcuffs after being accused by his killer, Vickrum Digwa, of racism.
Police have consequently been facing calls to drop race bias policies.
Sir Keir said yesterday "serious questions need to be addressed - not least how accusations of racism informed the decision-making in this case", but accused right-wing factions of using the case "to try create division".
Also, the Prime Minister will likely face questions about the latest Mandelson files release and the revelation he uses the disappearing messages function on Whatsapp.
The 1,500-page heavy tranche exposed private messages between the disgraced peer and senior ministers where frustrations were aired over Sir Keir's leadership.
One of the exchanges showed Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden complaining to Lord Mandelson every meeting he had was to discuss "who we can tax in order to pay benefits to others".
Downing Street also admitted there were few existing messages between the Prime Minister and the ex-ambassador because Sir Keir has the disappearing function on Whatsapp, calling into question if this is a breach of ministerial transparency.
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Nick Timothy: 'Our law enforcement are being corrupted by political correctness'
Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy described Henry Nowak's murder as "not an isolated example".
Speaking to GB News, he said: "This is not an isolated example and our criminal justice system and our law enforcement are being corrupted by political correctness and by left-wing ideologies that talk about equity rather than equality.
"They say that we need to treat people differently on the basis of their racial and their religious identity. That has to be completely wrong."
'I don't care how ceremonial your dagger is' - Zia Yusuf outlines Reform's Equal Treatment Act
Reform's spokesman Zia Yusuf has drawn comparisons between the murder of George Floyd in 2020 and Henry Nowak's killing last year.
Speaking to GB News, he pointed out how politicians and other public institutions weighed in on supporting the Black Lives Matter movement which spun out following Mr Floyd's murder at the hands of US police, but the same response has not been witnessed for Mr Nowak's killing.
Mr Yusuf also drew attention to Reform proposing a new policy called the Equal Treatment Act, which would see DEI policies being abolished across police forces.
He said: "Our position, Nigel's position, Reform's position is simple - everyone is equal.
"The other part of the act will be to end the religious exemption that allows some religious to carry deadly weapons, and as I said this morning, 'I don't care how ceremonial your dagger is'.
"If you're not law enforcement under a Reform Government, you will not get to carry deadly weapons on our streets. Full stop."
Policing minister urges people to not 'overreact' following Henry Nowak murder
Policing minister Sarah Jones has urged people not to "overreact" following the murder of Henry Nowak, after two arrests were made during unrest in Southampton.
The MP for Croydon West confirmed one person had been arrested for assaulting a police officer and another for possession of a weapon, and appealed for calm, pointing to the dignity shown by Nowak's family.
Speaking on Times Radio she said: "We can't allow — and the family said this, and they have acted with such dignity — they have said we do not want to create further division, hatred, or tension, and I think we need to respect that."