Murdered MP David Amess ‘catastrophically failed by Government’, claims daughter

Murdered MP Sir David Amess was “catastrophically” failed by the Government’s Prevent programme, his daughter has said as she called for a full inquest into his death.

The veteran MP, aged 69, was fatally stabbed by Ali Harbi Ali, then 26, at Belfairs Methodist Church in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, in October 2021.

Katie Amess, 39, revealed she had been informed that Ali was referred to Prevent in 2014, but after a single meeting, the anti-radicalisation programme did not pursue his case “due to an admin error.”

She told The Sunday Times: “He was reported. People were trying to help us, so why was he allowed to just go on and do whatever he wanted for seven years?

“What happened to my dad should not have been an admin error.”

Sir David, a father of five, had been holding surgery in his Southend West constituency when he was attacked by Ali, who was sentenced in 2022 to a whole-life term for the murder.

Ms Amess, an actress residing in West Hollywood in the United States, described the pain of her father’s death as “unbearable” and “unspeakable”.

She continued: “It’s glaringly obvious that Prevent isn’t fit for purpose; it has consistently failed people.

“It failed me. It failed my family catastrophically, it failed the public, and it failed other Members of Parliament.”

According to a coroner’s report published in July, a six-month Prevent case review for Ali was “missed,” and a 12-month review found “nothing of concern.”

Ms Amess highlighted that there has never been a “full public examination into the events leading up to his death” following a coroner’s decision that the criminal trial had sufficed.

She added: “The people who actually could have helped me are nowhere to be seen; it feels as though we have been completely disregarded.

“My father would be so shocked if he knew what we were going through – he would be ashamed.”

Earlier this year, it was reported that Ms Amess had taken legal action against Essex Police and the Home Office by filing a personal injury claim at the High Court, with her lawyers stating that she wished to “ensure proper accountability and learning” from her father’s murder.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “Our thoughts continue to be with Sir David Amess’ family and friends.

“The attack on Sir David Amess was an awful tragedy; the safety of Members of Parliament is paramount, and significant work has been taken forward in response to his tragic killing.

“Prevent is a vital tool to stop people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism, addressing all ideological causes of terrorism.”

An Essex Police spokesperson said: “Sir David Amess was a deeply committed public servant who worked tirelessly for his community.

“In the immediate aftermath of his murder, two of our heroic unarmed officers rushed into the face of danger, attempting desperately to save him and, of course, detaining his killer.”

The force added: “We are aware that what is essentially a protective claim form has been filed at court; however, as these papers have not been served on our force, we are unable to comment further on them.

“We remain committed to supporting our elected members across the county in the execution of their public duty, and to this end, we regularly review and advise around security arrangements for our Members of Parliament.”

Essex Police noted that “as with all forces up and down the country,” it does not provide officers to police constituency surgeries.

Essex Coroner’s Service was approached for comment.