Andy Burnham says 'serious review' of MPs' safety needed after Ann Widdecombe's death

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Jul 14, 2026 - 19:50

Andy Burnham says 'serious review' of MPs' safety needed after Ann Widdecombe's death

Incoming Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said a "serious review" into the security given to MPs is needed following the death of Ann Widdecombe.

Ms Widdecombe, 78, was killed at her £600,000 bungalow in Devon last week, with counter-terrorism police now leading the investigation after determining her death a "targeted attack".

The former Tory minister, who defected to the Brexit Party in 2019 and later became a spokeswoman for Reform UK,

Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr Burnham said: “I notice quite a lot of change in the building behind me 10 years away, no more so than on the question of security.

“Actually, I was quite shocked to see how much security now has to be in place, and even so, it may need to be increased further.

“Politics has darkened in the last decade, there’s no getting away from that.

“It’s obviously appalling what happened to Ann. I knew Ann over many years in the House, and you know, we would get along – and everybody would get along.

“But it feels as though something has changed. It’s easy to blame social media, but it feels like it’s having some impact in just building that kind of toxicity that’s around the political debate.”

The Makerfield MP added: “I do think we need now a serious review of MPs’ security. I certainly am prepared to do that.”

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