Pic:Theresa May declared: "enough is enough" after the terror attack in central London
Staff reporter(wp/es):
Britain today entered a new era of clamping down on terrorism, as the Prime Minister declared "enough is enough" after seven people were killed in an extremist attack in London.
In a frank, hard-hitting speech outside Downing Street, Theresa May declared “things need to change” to counter the terrorist threat.
It came after seven people were slaughtered by terrorists who mowed people down on London Bridge and launched a knife attack in Borough Market.
The Prime Minister condemned the "evil" ideology behind the recent attacks on London and Manchester, saying the world was facing a new type of threat.
She said: "As terrorism breeds terrorism and perpetrators are inspired to attack, not only on the basis of carefully constructed plots after years of planning and training, and not even as lone attackers radicalised online, but by copying one another and often using the crudest of means of attack."
She announced more needed to be done to clampdown on extremist “safe spaces” both online and in Britain’s communities.
Mrs May also claimed there was "far too much tolerance of extremism in our country" and called for it to be tackled head on, while reviewing the country's counter-terrorism strategy to combat the changing threat.
But she insisted, after a day’s break from campaigning, the General Election would go ahead as planned on June 8.
She said: “We cannot and must not pretend that things can continue as they are. Things need to change and they need to change in four important ways.
The Prime Minister said the attacks on Westminster Bridge, Manchester Arena and the most recent atrocity were not connected by common networks but shared the same “evil ideology of Islamist extremism that preaches hatred, sows division and promotes sectarianism.”
She said: “It is an ideology that claims our Western values of freedom, democracy and human rights are incompatible with the religion of Islam. It is an ideology that is a perversion of Islam and a perversion of the truth.
“Defeating this ideology is one of the great challenges of our time, but it cannot be defeated by military intervention alone.
“It will not be defeated by the maintenance of a permanent defensive counter-terrorism operation, however skillful its leaders and practitioners.
“It will only be defeated when we turn people's minds away from this violence and make them understand that our values - pluralistic British values - are superior to anything offered by the preachers and supporters of hate.”
Turning to the way the ideology was spread, she said the UK needed to reach international agreements to regulate cyberspace.
And she went on: “While we have made significant progress in recent years, there is - to be frank - far too much tolerance of extremism in our country.
“So we need to become far more robust in identifying it and stamping it out across the public sector and across society.
“That will require some difficult, and often embarrassing, conversations.
“But the whole of our country needs to come together to take on this extremism, and we need to live our lives not in a series of separated, segregated communities, but as one truly United Kingdom.”
London's hospitals are treating 48 people for their injuries, with many in a life-threatening condition, the Prime Minister said.
She concluded: "Since the emergence of the threat from Islamist-inspired terrorism, our country has made significant progress in disrupting plots and protecting the public.
"But it is time to say `Enough is enough'. Everybody needs to go about their lives as they normally would. Our society should continue to function in accordance with our values.
"But when it comes to taking on extremism and terrorism, things need to change. As a mark of respect, two political parties have suspended our national campaigns for today.
"But violence can never be allowed to disrupt the democratic process, so those campaigns will resume in full tomorrow and the General Election will go ahead as planned on Thursday.
"As a country, our response must be as it has always been when we have been confronted by violence. We must come together, we must pull together, and united we will take on and defeat our enemies."
The three London Bridge attack terrorists were killed within eight minutes of the first call to police, and the emergency services have been praised for their response to the atrocity.
The attackers brought carnage to the capital, stabbing a police officer and revellers with 12-inch knives - but police put a stop to the rampage in eight minutes.
Police were called at around 10.08pm to reports of a vehicle striking pedestrians on London Bridge.
The white van then continued to drive to Borough Market, and three men left the vehicle and began to stab people, including a British Transport Police officer.
They were confronted and shot by police at Borough Market within eight minutes of the first call being made.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan described the attack as "deliberate and cowardly".
He said: "My thoughts are with everyone affected, and I'd like to thank the brave men and women of our emergency services who were first on the scene and will be working throughout the night."
Met Police commissioner Cressida Dick has praised the "extraordinary" courage of members of the public and emergency services who "ran towards the danger".
She paid tribute to the actions of those caught up in the terror attacks in the London Bridge area on Saturday night, saying she was sure they had helped save lives.
Addressing media outside Scotland Yard, Ms Dick said: "In the early hours of the morning I visited one of the hospitals where the injured are being treated.
"There I heard truly remarkable stories of extraordinarily brave actions by officers on and off duty who were first on the scene.
"I also heard of colleagues from other emergency services and members of the public who ran towards the danger as this incident unfolded.
"Many, many people risked their own safety to help others and to treat those seriously injured and indeed to confront the suspects involved.
"It's clear to me that the courage of those people during and following the attack was extraordinary and I pay tribute to all of them who came to the aid of those in need during this dreadful attack, and I am sure helped to save lives."
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