The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has just released a statement after Lucy Connolly admitted inciting racial hatred.

Frank Ferguson, head of the CPS special crime and counter terrorism unit, says: “During police interview Lucy Connolly stated she had strong views on immigration, told officers she did not like immigrants and claimed that children were not safe from them.

"It is not an offence to have strong or differing political views, but it is an offence to incite racial hatred – and that is what Connolly has admitted doing.

"The prosecution case included evidence which showed that racist tweets were sent out from Mrs Connolly’s X account both in the weeks and months before the Southport attacks – as well as in the days after.

"Connolly wrongly thought that she could escape justice by hiding behind a screen, but today she has pleaded guilty and admitted her crime. She will now face the consequences of her actions."

She will be sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court on 17 October.

Image source, X

Lucy Connolly, the wife of a Tory councillor, has pleaded guilty at Northampton Crown Court to publishing a social media post which stirred up racial hatred.

The 41-year old called for mass deportations and attacks on hotels housing asylum seekers in a post on X on the day three girls were killed in Southport.

"Mass deportation now, set fire to all the f****** hotels full of the bas***** for all I care... If that makes me racist, so be it," the post read.

As we reported earlier, a 15-year-old boy who admitted stealing from Lush and Greggs during riots in Hull was expected to be sentenced today.

His sentencing has now been moved to Thursday, 26 September.

The teenager – who can't be named due to his age – has pleaded guilty to violent disorder and two counts of burglary.

We can bring you more detail now from our last post about a judge in Manchester's decision to adjourn the sentencing of a 12-year-old boy after his mother flew to Ibiza.

District Judge Hirst was told the boy's mother was not present, having gone on holiday on Sunday and due to return to the UK on Thursday.

The boy, who was accompanied by his uncle, had earlier admitted to being part of a group that gathered on 31 July outside a hotel housing asylum seekers in Newton Heath.

The judge thanked the boy's uncle for accompanying his nephew to court in his mother's absence, but added: "One day before the hearing we find out the mum has gone on holiday and is not with her son who played a greater part in the recent civil disorder than any adult or child I've seen coming through these courts.

"...I will require a full explanation from mum on her decision to go on holiday one day before her 12-year-old son comes to court facing a potential custodial sentence.

"This is a serious situation, it has now deteriorated in my view because of the actions of the mother. She is on notice, I will be challenging her about this decision."

Addressing the boy directly, the judge told him: "Boys like you need their mums in their lives. I need your mum here."

The sentencing of a 12-year-old who admitted to participating in two separate incidents of disorder in Manchester last month has been adjourned because his mother has gone on holiday to Ibiza, a court heard.

District Judge Joanne Hirst told Manchester Magistrates' Court she was "frankly astonished" that the boy's mother had decided to fly abroad for a five-day sunshine break.

Judge Hirst adjourned sentencing of the boy for two counts of violent disorder and ordered a parental summons so the mother must appear before the court when she passes sentence on September 11.

The boy cannot be identified due to his age.

Dominic Casciani
Home and legal correspondent

Image source, PA Media

The prison population in England and Wales has hit a record high in the wake of last month’s disorder.

There are 88,350 people in jails - a rise of 998 in just a month - according to data released by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) on Friday. This takes the prison population to its the highest level since weekly figures were first published in 2011.

Confirmation of the sharp rise comes 10 days before the start of an emergency early release scheme for some prisoners, which is being implemented to ease overcrowding.

The scheme begins on 10 September as a means of freeing up around 5,500 beds to hold newly-sentenced criminals.

Some of those places are expected to be rapidly taken up by people who have been charged or convicted of offences related to recent rioting.

Figures from the National Police Chiefs' Council show that almost 500 of the 1,280 people arrested since that disorder have not been charged or sent to court yet. The body said on Friday morning that forces had identified “hundreds more suspects” on top of those already arrested

You can read more on this here.

Image source, Lis Henderson/BBC

As we mentioned earlier, a 15-year-old boy is being sentenced in Hull today after he pleaded guilty to violent disorder and two counts of burglary.

The teenager – who can't be named due to his age – admitted stealing bath products from Lush and food items from Greggs during the riots on 3 August in Hull city centre.

During a previous court hearing, the boy said it was “wrong of me to do that”.

He travelled from his home in North Lincolnshire to meet friends in the city, where the disorder was taking place.

Image source, Getty Images

Many of those who have been previously sentenced in relation to the unrest have been charged with violent disorder.

It it an offence under section 2 of the Public Order Act 1986, and the sentence can vary from a community order to a maximum of five years in custody depending on the circumstances.

In order for the defendant to be found guilty, the prosecution has to prove that three or more people, present together, use or threaten unlawful violence against a person or property, and that the group's behaviour would cause a reasonable person to fear for their safety.

Image source, x

Lucy Connolly, the wife of a Tory councillor, will appear in court today for a plea hearing after she was charged with publishing written material to stir up racial hatred.

It is alleged that on 29 July – the day of the Southport knife attack – the 41-year-old posted on social media calling for mass deportations and attacks on hotels housing asylum seekers.

"If that makes me racist, so be it," she allegedly wrote.

Connolly – the partner of Conservative West Northamptonshire councillor Raymond Connolly – later apologised and said she regretted making the post.

“Acting on information that I now know to be false and malicious, and in a moment of extreme outrage and emotion, I posted words that I realise were wrong in every way," she said.

Image source, Northumbria Police

Manchester:

• A 12-year-old boy who has admitted throwing a missile at a police van and taking part in two separate incidents of disorder in Manchester on 31 July and 3 August
• A 16-year-old boy who admitted to throwing an object towards mounted police during disorder in Bolton on 4 August

Hull:

• A 15-year-old boy who admitted stealing food items from Greggs and bath products from Lush in Hull city centre on 3 August

Newcastle-upon-Tyne:

• Josh Kellett, 29, Leanne Hodgson, 43, and Andrew Smith, 41, who pleaded guilty to violent disorder in Sunderland on 2 August

As a reminder, under-18s are not normally named in court reports for legal reasons.

After the fatal stabbing of three young girls in Southport, riots broke out across England, and in Belfast in Northern Ireland.

Crowds attacked mosques and accommodation housing asylum seekers, cars and buildings were set on fire, and shops looted. The Police Federation estimated more than 100 officers were injured.

The disorder was fuelled by misinformation online, the far-right and anti-immigration sentiment.

Counter-demonstrators responded with a series of rallies, which you can read more about here.

Image source, Handout

On 29 July, Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, were killed in a knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga event. Eight more children and two adults were injured.

Later that day, police said they had arrested a 17-year-old from a village nearby and that they were not treating the incident as terror-related.

Almost immediately after the attack, social media posts falsely speculated that the suspect was an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK on a boat in 2023, with an incorrect name being widely circulated. There were also unfounded rumours that he was Muslim.

In fact, the suspect was born in Wales to Rwandan parents.

The following evening, more than a thousand people attended a vigil for the victims in Southport. Later on, violence broke out in the town and developed into a riot.

The day after, violent protests in London, Hartlepool and Manchester broke out, which police linked to Southport. More then took place throughout the week – with many targeting mosques and hotels housing asylum seekers.

• You can read more about how the violence spread here

Welcome to our live coverage as more people are due in court over offences related to violent riots which broke out across parts of the country following the fatal stabbing of three young girls in Southport in July.

The violence in England and Northern Ireland was fuelled by misinformation online, the far-right and anti-immigration sentiment.

Crowds attacked mosques and asylum seekers' accomodation, cars and buildings were set on fire, and shops looted.

Among those being sentenced is a 12-year-old boy who admitted to participating in two separate incidents of disorder in Manchester, and a 15-year-old boy, who admitted to stealing food from Greggs and bath products from Lush in Hull.

Elsewhere, a hearing is taking place for a 15-year-old boy from Sunderland, who was the first person in England to be charged with riot.

We'll be bringing you live updates and analysis here, so stay with us.