Unman Khan and some light on the issue

Is Mr Merritt what The Daily Mail and Express might call one of the "liberal do gooder types"?

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.

Mr Merritt suggested 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".

Cambridge University graduate Jack Merritt, 25, worked for the Learning Together programme, which uses education to try to rehabilitate prisoners into the community.

Following the attack, the Conservatives vowed to toughen terror sentences and stop criminals entering the UK from the EU, and launched a crackdown on people convicted of terrorism offences who had been released early.

That prompted Mr Merritt to share a tweet by left-wing journalist and academic Ash Sarkar which said: "It's beyond disgusting that Boris Johnson, Priti Patel and newspapers like the [Daily] Mail are using Jack Merritt's death and image to promote an agenda he fought against all his life. He was a passionate believer in rehabilitation and transformative justice, not draconian sentencing."

He then retweeted a second post by Ms Sarkar which said: "Jack Merritt's family and loved ones have asked that rightwing newspapers and political parties not use his murder to advance reactionary demands. If you see it happening, call it out. They deserve so much better."

Mr Merritt also posted two front-page articles about the Conservatives' crackdown on released terror offenders, writing: "Don't use my son's death, and his and his colleague's photos - to promote your vile propaganda. Jack stood against everything you stand for - hatred, division, ignorance."

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-london-bridge-terror-attack-jack-merritt-father-daily-mail-a9228886.html

M.
Thanks for info..

jolbook Khan was an official attender at the meeting in one of the meeting rooms. Phtographs suggested that there were only about 30 people in the meeting. It was not the sort of meeting where you would have a security man sitting in. Indeed given the nature of the meeting, I would think that would have been firmly rejected.

There was an interview with the manager at Fishmonger's Hall at lunch today. Their security was fine. The entrance doors were kept locked and they tried not to unlock them and let him out, but he was threatening staff and they decided.with the police already on their way that it was safer to open the doors.

It was quite clear in the interview that FH staff responded quickly and very courageously and at least one has already been nominated for a gallantry award.

TerriBull Asked by Sophie Ridge. Jeremy Corbyn he said shoot to kill was the right thing to do.

All I am going to say is that instead of arguing and posting your personal views you might consider what the two people who died would want to be remembered for. If you think it would be for increasing sentences and becoming more draconian that's fine, but if you think they would prefer to be remembered as believing in rehabilitation and second chances then honour their memory appropriately.

Perhaps it was deemed a private function where the usual bag searching rules don't apply. Big mistake though.

I don't know Fishmongers Hall, but security in that particular conference room should have been tighter. I think there is a case for health and safety to look at, at least.

as he was born here he is deemed British.

Well of course he is. How many generations do we have to live here before we are just accepted as British. My grandfather on one side and great grandmother on the other emigrated to Britian - but of course, that doesn't count does it? They were Irish. So I am British born.

It is only differently coloured British born here who are deemed to be British. What about the white British Islamic terrorists. Are they ^ deemed^ to be British?

I am glad I am having the wisdom to apply for an Irish passport

this thread is being dominated by some "liberal do gooder types"
who believe they are far superior and know better than everyone else......
I guess they are here to boost their sad ego's.

Firecracker is so right.

Sorry for my contribution.

How sad turning the murder of two people by a terrorist into a personal attack on Gransnet posters who don't happen to agree with you, how sad and inappropriate.

growstuff I could add a couple more names

Oh nice!

txss off

jolbrook's and Firecracker's posts sound like the kind of thing spouted by bores at weddings - I'm sure we've all come across the kind of people that nobody wants to sit next to, so they huddle together, chuntering to themselves, while everybody else has fun.

Please listen to Jack Merrit's father, who speaks with real moral authority.

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-london-bridge-terror-attack-jack-merritt-father-daily-mail-a9228886.html

Jolbrook. I find that a ludicrous comment. Fishmongers Hall is a public building where people are invited, enter, go about their business and leave again. Indeed, there are events that they may enter without invitation. The management will be aware of the need for security but will also need to balance this will public acceptance as well as the cost of providing the equipment and staff necessary. Imagine having to pay £x extra the next time you go M&S - that’s after being searched on the way in.

I do hope the Management of the Venue will be sued. As said; how on earth did the jihadist (I refuse to honour him with a name) get in with two knives and a what looked like a suicide vest? We need answers.

Probably didn't want to offend them, against their human rights.

They didn't dare; they did't want to upset the ex-offenders - probably PC madness.

its disgraceful that Boris is using it for election reasons and blaming Labour. He has had enough time and chances to change it.

I believe it should be life, no release, for these sort of crimes.

Yes I thought that Callistemon, the general public have to hand over handbags/rucksacks etc. to be scanned if visiting a museum or the like. It seems very laissez faire of the organisers not to have put the participants through a thorough search, given their histories.

How did he get into a venue like that, on a course designed to rehabilitate ex-prisoners, or to assess how their rehabilitation is going, with a knife?
Let alone a suicide vest.

Surely common sense should dictate that security should be reasonably tight? Having had my handbag searched on several occasions just visiting a tourist venue, I can't understand this at all.

I just heard on the radio that the vest was visible from the start, inside the hall. Those men are true heroes.

The Secret Barrister, who I posted about on another thread, said that automatic release* is no longer in force today* but Kahn's sentence, and his sentence as altered by the Appeal judge, was imposed before the new regulations came into force and the new regulations were not applied to then existing sentences.