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Lucy Letby is “cowardly” for missing her sentencing hearing, the prime minister has said, adding that the government is “looking at” changing the law.

Letby was last week convicted of murdering seven babies and attempting to end the lives of six others while working as a neonatal nurse.

She did not appear in the courtroom today, with the judge set to outline how long she will spend in prison.

Lucy Letby latest: ‘Sadistic’ Letby refusing to leave cells

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Letby sentencing: Van arrives at court

During his trial, Thomas Cashman, the killer of Olivia Pratt-Korbel, did not attend court at points and did not turn up to his sentencing.

Judges have the discretion to compel people to appear before them for sentencing – however, it remains up to prison governors to actually execute this order as it would be their staff who would have to force someone from their cell.

An extra two years can be added to someone’s sentence if they refuse to attend the court.

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Lucy Letby

Rishi Sunak said: “The first thing is to extend my sympathies to everyone affected by this.

“I think, like everyone reading about this, it’s just shocking and harrowing.

“Now, I think it’s cowardly that people who commit such horrendous crimes do not face their victims and hear firsthand the impact that their crimes have had on them and their families and loved ones.

“We are looking and have been at changing the law to make sure that that happens, and that’s something that we’ll bring forward in due course.”

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to close the “shamefully exploited loophole” which lets convicts miss their time in the dock.

The guidelines were laid out by the Crown Prosecution Service, which Sir Keir would have overseen as director of public prosecutions.

It is not uncommon for people to refuse to leave their cells or report as sick on the date of hearings – even when they are dialing into proceedings virtually from the prison.

Read more:
Bereaved demand new law to force sentencing appearance
Who is Lucy Letby?
The psychology behind healthcare murderers

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Letby sentencing no-show ‘disgusting’

Sir Keir tweeted: “As director of public prosecutions, I saw how crucial it is for victims and their families that perpetrators appear in court.

“That criminals can cowardly hide away is a shamefully exploited loophole, and one Labour will close. Victims must be at the heart of our justice system.”

Minister for Children Claire Coutinho told Sky News “more law is probably required”.

“The justice secretary [Alex Chalk] said he’s very committed to making sure these laws are in place,” she added.

“I think we can all say that these crimes have been some of the most sickening that I’ve seen in my entire lifetime and it’s really important that victims have that moment in court with the perpetrator there and the perpetrator has to face that moment of justice.”

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Labour vows to end sentencing loophole

Pressed on why additional laws are needed, given the powers judges already have, the minister said: “I think there are some changes that it sounds like are needed as well to make sure that in every instance the perpetrator has to go to court.”

Ms Coutinho added that, if Letby gets a whole-life order, adding two years to her sentence for not appearing “might not be enough of an incentive”.

Some in government went further, with one source saying that if Letby requires “lawful enforcement” to be in court, then “so be it”.

“If she continues to refuse that will only strengthen our resolve to change the law as soon as we can,” they added.

Labour has claimed a “number of things” could be done to compel people to attend sentencing.

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Shadow Justice Secretary Ellie Reeves told Sky News: “You could look at things like prison privileges for example… and one of the suggestions we’ve heard is to have the sentencing live-streamed into someone’s cell.”

She said the government had “failed to act” – which will likely lead to Letby not attending court today.

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PM faces threat of major rebellion during key vote today

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PM faces threat of major rebellion during key vote today

Sir Keir Starmer continues to face the threat of a major rebellion during a key vote on welfare reforms later – despite making last-minute concessions to disgruntled Labour MPs.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall has confirmed that all existing claimants of the personal independence payment (PIP), the main disability benefit, will be protected from changes to eligibility.

The combined value of the standard Universal Credit allowance and the health top-up will rise “at least in line with inflation” every year of this parliament.

And an additional £300m for employment support for sick and disabled people in 2026 has been announced, which will rise every year after.

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Welfare cuts ‘needed to be made’

Ms Kendall has also promised that a consultation into PIP – “co-produced” with disabled people – will be published next autumn.

She said the U-turn on welfare cuts will cost taxpayers about £2.5bn by 2030 – less than half the £4.8bn the government had expected to save with its initial proposals.

Modelling by Ms Kendall’s own department, released yesterday, suggested the proposals would push 150,000 more people into poverty by 2030, down from the 250,000 estimated under the original plan.

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But after announcing the U-turns, Labour MPs were still publicly saying they could not back the plans as they do not go far enough to allay their concerns.

Disabilities minister Stephen Timms would not say he was “confident” the proposals would pass the Commons when asked on Sky News’ Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge.

“We’ve got a very strong package, I certainly hope it passes,” he replied.

Read more: What are the concessions to the welfare reform bill?

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‘Disabled people thrown under the bus’

A total of 86 charities united yesterday to call on MPs to reject the reforms, saying they will harm disabled people and calling it “a political choice”.

The likes of Oxfam, Child Action Poverty Group, Mind and Shelter said the bill has been brought to a vote without consulting disabled people and without any assessment “of its impact on health and employment outcomes”.

When asked to name “a single” disability organisation in favour of the reforms, Ms Kendall declined to do so.

Several Labour MPs indicated they would still vote against the changes, leaving the government in the dark over how big a rebellion it still may face.

Ms Kendall tried to allay their fears, telling MPs: “I believe we have a fair package, a package that protects existing claimants because they’ve come to rely on that support.”

Richard Burgon presented a petition to parliament yesterday evening against the cuts, signed by more than 77,000 people.

Several Labour MPs questioned why the vote was going ahead before the review into PIP is published – including Rachael Maskell, who said she could not “countenance sick and disabled people being denied support” and added: “It is a matter of conscience.”

Connor Naismith said the concessions “undoubtedly improve efforts to secure welfare reform which is fair”, but added: “Unfortunately, I do not believe these concessions yet go far enough.”

Nadia Whittome
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Labour rebel Nadia Whittome said the government was ‘ignoring’ disabled people

Nadia Whittome accused the government of “ignoring” disabled people and urged ministers to go “back to the drawing board”.

Ian Byrne told the Commons he will vote against the “cruel cuts” to disability benefits because the “so-called concessions go nowhere near far enough”.

The vote will take place this evening, with coverage on Sky News’ Politics Hub live blog and on TV.

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Circle applies for US trust bank charter to manage its USDC reserve

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Circle applies for US trust bank charter to manage its USDC reserve

Circle applies for US trust bank charter to manage its USDC reserve

Other crypto firms are also reportedly considering applying for a national bank charter, following in the footsteps of Anchorage Digital Bank, which received a license in 2021.

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US Supreme Court will not review IRS case involving Coinbase user data

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US Supreme Court will not review IRS case involving Coinbase user data

US Supreme Court will not review IRS case involving Coinbase user data

A lower court ruling will stand in a case involving a Coinbase user who filed a lawsuit against the IRS after the crypto exchange turned over transaction data.

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