British PM vows to strengthen prison sentences after London attack

[webfact 47,846]

British PM vows to strengthen prison sentences after London attack

By Paul Sandle and Elizabeth Piper

 

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks to the media at the scene of a stabbing on London Bridge, in which two people were killed, in London, Britain, November 30, 2019. REUTERS/Simon Dawson/Pool

 

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Sunday he would strengthen prison sentences, vowing to boost security after an attack in London by a man jailed for terrorism who had been released early.

 

Less than two weeks before Britain heads to the polls, law and order has taken top billing since Usman Khan, wearing a fake suicide vest and wielding knives, killed two people on Friday before being shot dead by police.

 

Johnson's Conservatives have championed tough police and prison measures, but opponents have criticised them for overseeing almost a decade of cuts to public services.

 

Johnson said if he won the Dec. 12 election, he would invest more in the prison system and toughen sentences.

 

"I absolutely deplore the fact that this man was out on the street, I think it was absolutely repulsive and we are going to take action," he told BBC interviewer Andrew Marr.

 

He portrayed his rival for prime minister, Jeremy Corbyn, as weak on crime, blaming the Labour Party for a law passed more than a decade ago that provided for some prisoners to be released early automatically.

 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he would toughen sentences for people convicted of violent crime and terrorism, such as the attacker who killed two people on Friday, if he wins a national election this month. Emer McCarthy reports.

 

Johnson said around 74 people convicted of serious offences had been released under the legislation, and that they were being monitored to prevent any threat to the public.

 

Corbyn, a veteran peace campaigner, said convicted terrorists should "not necessarily" serve their full prison terms.

 

"It depends on the circumstances, it depends on the sentence, but crucially it depends on what they've done in the prison," he told Sky News.

 

ELECTION ECHOES

Corbyn said Conservative cuts to community policing and to probation, mental health, youth and social services could "lead to missed chances to intervene in the lives of people who go on to commit inexcusable acts".

 

"You can't keep people safe on the cheap," he said in a speech.

 

Khan's attack, which took place on London Bridge, stirred memories of the last election in 2017, when three militants killed eight people and injured at least 48 in the same part of the capital.

 

On Friday, bystanders wrestled Khan to the ground before police shot him dead. The police found no immediate evidence to suggest Khan had been working with others.

 

The two people killed were Jack Merritt, 25, and Saskia Jones, 23, police said.

 

Both were graduates involved in a prisoner rehabilitation programme that was organising a conference that Khan was attending, where he chose to start his attack.

 

Two people remained in hospital in a stable condition on Sunday, while a third left hospital.

 

The attack brought a sombre tone to a rancorous election campaign, which is presenting voters with a stark choice between Labour, with its promise to raise taxes on the rich and businesses to fund a much expanded state, and the Conservatives' pledge to "get Brexit done" and move on to other issues.

 

(Reporting by Elizabeth Piper; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-12-02

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[AhFarangJa 8,983]

It will never happen. Too many namby pamby, human rights lawyers claiming their clients are suffering stress or such like. Just throw them back to the s***holes they came from. If they are British born then put them in prison and feed them bacon sandwiches and pork pies.

[TopDeadSenter 4,934]

As I have always said, these guys can never be released back on the streets. They are enemies of our civilized life. We need some sort of Guantanamo style place to intern them if they survive their decades long sentence of hard labour. The Falklands seems perfect. If that plan is a no go, then in case they are released back on the streets the jihadis lawyer, judges at the court and parole staff must be personally liable for any violent crime the jihadi does. I think that will quickly bring some common sense back into the game.

 Still there is no real desire to end this mounting terror. How many of the mosques that provide support and training for these jihadis have been closed down? How many of the imams that persuaded these youngsters that sharia is the only way have been dealt with? There is no hope until we stop submitting and start fighting back. 

[RichardColeman 11,514]

The question needs to seriously be asked and answered and acted on, as to why Islam attracts so many people with 'mental illnesses'. 

[Bluespunk 46,712]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

He portrayed his rival for prime minister, Jeremy Corbyn, as weak on crime, blaming the Labour Party for a law passed more than a decade ago that provided for some prisoners to be released early automatically.

So who was in power when this man was released?

 

If the law is so bad why have you not repealed it- you’ve been in power for most of the last decade...

[yogi100 3,045]

In a few weeks it will be all forgotten and it will all go back to as it is now.

 

Just more wind and air from another namby pamby politician like the 'lessons have been learned' claptrap.

 

The only time something concrete will be done is when these radicals target the useless clowns in Westminster and continue doing so.

[zhounan 265]

None a word for Assange

[possum1931 9,964]

Why are all the Muslim Mosques still opened after each atrocity, all these murdering terrorists belong to a Mosque, don't tell me they don't, so why are they not getting shut down?

 

[puipuitom 1,522]

Conservatives… 10 years in power, but still "did not repair" the claimed Labour law in this.

[Opl 3,150]

5 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

The question needs to seriously be asked and answered and acted on, as to why Islam attracts so many people with 'mental illnesses'. 

As one British jihadi wrote in a recruitment guide for the organisation: “When we descend on the streets of London, Paris and Washington … not only will we spill your blood, but we will also demolish your statues, erase your history and, most painfully, convert your children who will then go on to champion our name and curse their forefathers.”

[Opl 3,150]

4 hours ago, possum1931 said:

Why are all the Muslim Mosques still opened after each atrocity, all these murdering terrorists belong to a Mosque, don't tell me they don't, so why are they not getting shut down?

 

"Britain, has a network of militant mosques frequented by members of al-Muhajiroun, which gave rise to an even more radical group, Sharia4UK, led by Anjem Choudary."

the reference to Islam makes all the difference between jihad and the other forms of violence that young people indulge in. Pointing out this pervasive culture of violence does not amount to “exonerating” Islam. The fact that these young people choose Islam as a framework for thought and action is fundamental, and it is precisely the Islamisation of radicalism that we must strive to understand.

Edited December 2 by Opl

[Nigel Garvie 1,999]

This post is about Johnson and tougher sentences. The dead man's family begged Johnson, politicians in general, and the right wing Tory gutter press NOT to use his son to score political party points for the election. 

Johnson ignored the request of the dead man's father. 

This describes his response. 

The father of a man killed in the London Bridge terror attack has shared posts calling Boris Johnson's response to the murders "beyond disgusting".

David Merritt, whose son Jack was one of two people killed by convicted terrorist Usman Khan on Friday, condemned the prime minister and Priti Patel, the home secretary, for using the attack as justification for a series of tougher criminal policies.

 

What he actually said was that the Tories were using his son's death to promote "vile propaganda" and shared a tweet accusing Mr Johnson of trying to "make political gain from people's death in a terror incident".

 

Johnson has fallen into the sub human scum category. What this implies about the values of people who know who he is, his serial and casual lying, and what he has now done, and yet will still vote for him, hardly bears thinking about.

Edited December 2 by Nigel Garvie

[kingdong 1,737]

15 minutes ago, Nigel Garvie said:

This post is about Johnson and tougher sentences. The dead man's family begged Johnson, politicians in general, and the right wing Tory gutter press NOT to use his son to score political party points for the election. 

Johnson ignored the request of the dead man's father. 

This describes his response. 

The father of a man killed in the London Bridge terror attack has shared posts calling Boris Johnson's response to the murders "beyond disgusting".

David Merritt, whose son Jack was one of two people killed by convicted terrorist Usman Khan on Friday, condemned the prime minister and Priti Patel, the home secretary, for using the attack as justification for a series of tougher criminal policies.

 

What he actually said was that the Tories were using his son's death to promote "vile propaganda" and shared a tweet accusing Mr Johnson of trying to "make political gain from people's death in a terror incident".

 

Johnson has fallen into the sub human scum category. What this implies about the values of people who know who he is, his serial and casual lying, and what he has now done, and yet will still vote for him, hardly bears thinking about.

Didn,t remain try to score points out of the jo cox murder?

[kingdong 1,737]

55 minutes ago, Opl said:

As one British jihadi wrote in a recruitment guide for the organisation: “When we descend on the streets of London, Paris and Washington … not only will we spill your blood, but we will also demolish your statues, erase your history and, most painfully, convert your children who will then go on to champion our name and curse their forefathers.”

Charming

[yogi100 3,045]

4 hours ago, Nigel Garvie said:

This post is about Johnson and tougher sentences. The dead man's family begged Johnson, politicians in general, and the right wing Tory gutter press NOT to use his son to score political party points for the election. 

Johnson ignored the request of the dead man's father. 

This describes his response. 

The father of a man killed in the London Bridge terror attack has shared posts calling Boris Johnson's response to the murders "beyond disgusting".

David Merritt, whose son Jack was one of two people killed by convicted terrorist Usman Khan on Friday, condemned the prime minister and Priti Patel, the home secretary, for using the attack as justification for a series of tougher criminal policies.

 

What he actually said was that the Tories were using his son's death to promote "vile propaganda" and shared a tweet accusing Mr Johnson of trying to "make political gain from people's death in a terror incident".

 

Johnson has fallen into the sub human scum category. What this implies about the values of people who know who he is, his serial and casual lying, and what he has now done, and yet will still vote for him, hardly bears thinking about.

That's what happens when you introduce a university education into the mix.

 

It's time the politicians started asking Joe Bloggs' for advice and guidance when it comes to terrorism. There's not an MP in Westminster who did not receive a few years of liberal university brainwashing.