Sir Keir Starmer has said he was ‘profoundly humbled’ to meet the family of murdered teenager Henry Nowak, as the Prime Minister pledged to take ‘whatever action is required to right the wrongs in this case’.
The meeting came a day after Sir Keir denied Britain has a ‘two-tier’ policing system.
Henry’s mother, father and stepfather walked briskly and avoided contact with media gathered outside No 10 after the almost hour-long meeting with the Prime Minister.
The bereaved family had earlier spoken with Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who praised their ‘extraordinary courage’ and insisted they want ‘common sense’ policing.
She said they were keen for Henry’s ‘memory to help bring our society together’ instead of ‘tearing our communities apart’.
The talks came after violence broke out in Southampton amid an outcry over the treatment of the 18-year-old.
Distressing footage showed officers handcuffing the stabbed teenager as he lay dying on the street, discounting his pleas for help.
The killer – who was sentenced to life with a minimum 21 years in prison this week – had lied that he was the victim of a racist attack by Mr Nowak.
Some have been pointing the finger at police equalities guidance for the treatment. Nigel Farage has urged the public to show ‘cold rage’ and insisted ‘white lives matter’.
But Sir Keir has swiped that Mr Farage is only ‘pretending’ to respect the wishes of the bereaved family.
He has also accused billionaire X owner Elon Musk of trying to ‘whip up division’ and said Britain needs to ‘assert who we are’ as ‘reasonable, tolerant people’.
Mrs Badenoch said of the family: ‘They have endured the most appalling loss, it is a life sentence for them.
‘They have also faced the agonising decision to release the harrowing body-worn camera footage, knowing how painful it would be and how strongly people would react.
‘They did so because they want truth, accountability and change. They have asked that we work across political parties and religions to rebuild trust in the police.
‘That trust has been broken because of what happened, and I agree with them on that.’
Mrs Badenoch said: ‘We must also be prepared to examine, carefully and seriously, religious practices or exemptions that permit the carrying of dangerous weapons in public, and other activities that are not conducive to the public good.
‘We also need to examine where the law needs to change. Henry’s family do not want anger to tear communities apart.
‘They are a family who have friends across faith and race, and so did Henry.
‘His family want his memory to help bring our society together. Everyone knows I have strong views about how we should deal with equality under the law.
‘What the family agreed with me on is that we need to bring common sense back, and that is what we should all be fighting for. I promised the family that we will work to ensure there is a positive legacy for Henry out of this tragedy.’
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp has led calls for the officers who arrested the 18-year-old on bogus racism claims last December to face a full misconduct probe.
A minister insisted this morning that it is a ‘slur’ on police to suggest there is ‘two-tier’ policing.
But Lucy Rigby, chief secretary to the treasury, said it is the ‘right thing to do’ to look again at police equality guidance.
She told Sky News: ‘Really, fundamentally, I think that is a slur on the thousands of police officers that go out to work every day, putting themselves in harm’s way to serve the public, to try and prevent crime, and to keep us all safe.
‘So, I think that the suggestion, in light of that, that we have two-tier policing, which suggests at its heart that the police are on a sort of systemic basis pushing the interests of one group above another.
‘I genuinely think is a slur on all those police officers that are serving this country day and night, seven days a week.’
Asked if it is possible the NPCC guidance to police has created an unequal system, she said: ‘I think it’s the right thing to do that that guidance is looked at, because the fundamental principle, as you know, that we have in this country is equality
