Image source, PA Media

Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP whose constituency includes HMP Wandsworth, says she raised staff shortages with the justice secretary "many, many months ago".

Khan says she found that in December last year, only seven members of staff turned up for a night shift to look after 1500 inmates.

Some staff members had been asked to stay on for double shifts to make up for shortfalls, she adds.

"The prison itself was also without water for six days," Khan says.

"Undoubtedly when you have situation like this things will happen and people will make mistakes.

"And now someone is on the loose."

We've just been hearing from Chris Atkins, a Bafta-nominated filmmaker who was jailed for taking part in a £2.2m tax scam.

He spent a year at HMP Wandsworth and has been talking to BBC Breakfast about the escape.

"I'm surprised it doesn't happen more often," Atkins says.

He says Wandsworth prison looks secure and terrifying from the outside, "but you go inside and it is just abject chaos on a day-to-day basis".

He explains that kitchens - where Khalife is believed to have escaped from - are in a different part of the prison, away from cells.

Atkins claims there were many vulnerable prisoners at Wandsworth while he was there, adding "there aren't enough staff, [and] the staff that are there aren't properly trained".

The former prisoner claims rules and processes at the prison are often ignored.

Atkins also says cuts to the justice budget meant experienced officers were deemed "too expensive" and more junior officers "are thrown onto the wings with a set of keys".

Chris Mason
Political editor

The governor of Wandsworth Prison will face the most awkward and excruciating of questions about how on earth Khalife's escape was able to happen.

I'm told an urgent call was set up between Justice Secretary Chalk and the prison governor, where those questions were posed.

Senior officials from the Prison and Probation Service were also on the call and the minister, as you might imagine, "sought assurances the jail was now secure," as one source put it to me.

The decisions that came next followed established procedures and were taken not by ministers, but by others: police forces around the country sharing information, and Border Force being told about Daniel Abed Khalife in case he was trying to flee the country.

The intelligence services are also likely to be involved.

By Wednesday afternoon, with no sign of him, there were appeals to the public to call 999 if he was seen.

By the evening, the justice secretary had ordered an investigation into how Khalife managed to escape.

Why was he being held at a Category B prison rather than a high-security Category A prison, such as Belmarsh in south-east London?

Were normal procedures being followed at the time of the escape, and if not, why not?

Image source, .

Questions are being asked privately in Westminster about whether it was appropriate that Daniel Abed Khalife was being held at Wandsworth Prison, rather than a high security facility, such as Belmarsh Prison in south-east London.

A court heard earlier this year that the former solider had disappeared from his base on 2 January after an alleged bomb hoax. He was later arrested.

Khalife was denied bail and when he appeared in court via video link in July, he was being held at HMP Wandsworth, a category B facility.

Labour shadow justice secretary Shabana Mahmood said the government needed to "urgently explain how they can't do the basic job of keeping potentially dangerous criminals locked up".

Justice Secretary Alex Chalk has ordered an investigation into the escape and has sought "reassurances about security at the prison".

Ian Acheson, a justice expert who has advised the government on counter-terrorism in prisons and was head of security at HMP Wandsworth in the 1990s, called the escape "very serious".

He told BBC News that the category B prison is "not an obvious place for somebody who has been charged with terror offences and is potentially a national security risk".

For those joining us this morning, here's a reminder of what's happened so far:

• On Wednesday afternoon, the Met Police revealed a manhunt for terror suspect Daniel Abed Khalife, who had escaped from HMP Wandsworth at around 07:50 BST
• The BBC understands he escaped via the kitchens before strapping himself to the underside of a food delivery van
• Police say he was dressed in chequered trousers, a white T-shirt and brown boots
• An alert was issued a short while later to key UK border points, including airports and ports, which prompted some delays as additional checks were put in place
• The Met say Khalife is "low risk" but have told the public not to approach him and to call 999 immediately if they see him
• The 21-year-old was awaiting trial after being accused of leaving fake bombs at a military base

• He was on remand awaiting trial in relation to terrorism and Official Secrets Act offences

Stay with us as we bring you the latest news, reaction and analysis.

Image source, Met Police

Police launched a manhunt on Wednesday for terror suspect Daniel Abed Khalife after he escaped from HMP Wandsworth.

The former soldier, 21, had been based at the MoD Stafford military base.

Khalife disappeared from the barracks on 2 January after an alleged bomb hoax. He was arrested a few weeks later on 26 January.

Following his court appearance on 28 January, Khalife was held at Belmarsh Prison. He was not released on bail and it is currently unclear when he was transferred to Wandsworth.

He was due to face a trial of up to six weeks at Woolwich Crown Court from 13 November.

James Harness
Live reporter

Good morning,

Welcome to our live coverage as police continue a manhunt for terror suspect Daniel Abed Khalife, who escaped from HMP Wandsworth yesterday.

Khalife, 21, was awaiting trial after being accused of leaving fake bombs at a military base while serving as a soldier - he denies the charges.

Police have urged the public not to approach him and to call 999 immediately if they see him.

Stick with us as we bring you the latest updates.

Andrew Humphrey
Live reporter

We're finishing our live coverage for today so let's bring you up to speed with everything that's happened today.

• At 15:30 this afternoon, the Met Police released a statement saying Daniel Abed Khalife had escaped from HMP Wandsworth just before 08:00 this morning
• The BBC understands that Khalife managed to get out of the jail by strapping himself to the underside of a food delivery van
• Shortly after that statement, an alert was released to UK ports and airports over Khalife's escape, this caused queues at airports around the UK as additional checks were carried out
• The Ministry of Defence said that Khalife - a former soldier being held on remand for suspected terror offences - was discharged from the army in May
• Rosena Allin-Khan, the Labour MP for Tooting - which includes Wandsworth Prison - said the jail was "chronically understaffed"

The Metropolitan Police is advising that if you do see Khalife, you are advised not to approach him and immediately dial 999.

You can read more on the hunt for Khalife in our full story here.

Nick Johnson
Reporting from Wandsworth

In the leafy, residential roads surrounding the prison, lots of people are talking about how this could have happened. One passer-by described the whole scenario as something straight out of Hollywood.

While the roads immediately around the prison appear normal - cars and vans coming and going - I have spotted a number of police cars, full of officers front and back, in the past couple of hours.

All have been driving up and down one of the main dual carriageways near the prison, windows down, looking around, certainly giving off the appearance that this search is still taking place close to the prison gates.

Daniel Abed Khalife was being held on remand at HMP Wandsworth in south-west London before he escaped just before 08:00 this morning, he was awaiting trial for planting a fake bomb and gathering information that might be useful to terrorists or enemies of the UK.

Khalife has denied all the charges against him.

Here's a quick timeline of his court appearances:

• In February, Khalife appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court, it was alleged he left the fake bomb at MOD Stafford where he was based when he was a soldier
• He didn’t enter a plea during that appearance, with the judge saying the matters were "very serious" and therefore the magistrates court's powers were "insufficient"
• Khalife appeared at the Old Bailey in July, where he again denied the charges against him
• A trial date has been set for 13 November at Woolwich Crown Court

Former prison officer Tom Hill has been speaking to the BBC and says the escape is "extremely unusual and distressing".

When asked about the Labour MP for Tooting - which includes Wandsworth prison - saying the jail was “chronically understaffed”, Hill says: “Jails throughout the prison service in England and Wales are extremely understaffed."

Hill is then asked what happens when it’s discovered a prisoner has escaped.

“Immediately the jail would go in to lockdown,” he replies. “The police would be called, the anti-terrorist unit would be informed and all those agencies would go into immediate action."

It is rare for prisoners to escape from jail, but it does happen. There have been a few high profile escapes over the years, including:

• Michael Wheatley - Wheatley escaped on a day release from Standford Hill prison in Kent in 2014 while serving a life sentence. He was on the run for five days before being arrested in Tower Hamlets, east London
• John Massey - One of the UK's longest serving prisoners, Massey escaped from Pentonville prison in London in 2012 after hiding in the prison gym before climbing onto the roof and scaling the wall using a makeshift rope fashioned from netting. He was in jail for murder and spent 48 hours on the run
• 38 IRA prisoners - The UK's biggest prison escape took place in 1983, when when 38 IRA prisoners broke out of the maximum security Maze prison in County Antrim in Northern Ireland
• George Blake - The Soviet spy escaped from Wormwood Scrubs in London along with two other inmates in 1966, using a rope ladder with rungs made out of knitting needles

To learn more about high-profile prison escapes, read the full article.

Chris Mason
Political editor

The Labour MP for Tooting in south London, which includes Wandsworth Prison, has said the jail is “chronically understaffed".

Rosena Allin-Khan's team got in touch with us tonight to say she secured data from the government at the beginning of this year which showed that on one day last December around a third of the shifts that needed covering by prison officers during the day were unfilled.

This was after staff were offered overtime to work extra shifts. The data is available here, external.

Last November there was also a disruption to the water supply, external to the prison for more than a week, meaning bottled water had to be supplied and “the prison implemented a restriction on access to showers and provided water to enable flushing of toilets,” the government acknowledged.

The prison escape of a terror suspect has caused delays at some of the UK’s major transport hubs.

Heathrow and Gatwick airports in London have confirmed extra checks are taking place as part of the search for Daniel Abed Khalife.

And delays have been reported at Manchester and Standsted airports, as well as at the Port of Dover.

Photographs and videos shared on social media show airports filled with snaking queues and waiting areas packed with travellers.

Disruption at border departure points is expected to ease this evening.

George Bowden
Live reporter

HMP Wandsworth is situated at the heart of the London borough of the same name.

It is just four miles (6.7km) from Westminster.

Surrounded by residential property, the prison walls loom large over this part of London.

Notable former inmates include the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and troubled rocker Pete Doherty.

Image source, Google Earth

Chris Mason
Political editor

Westminster this evening is digesting the news of this prison escape.

Very little is being said publicly, as those in government and opposition parties attempt to establish exactly what happened.

Some, in private, though are asking questions about whether it was appropriate that Daniel Abed Khalife was being held at Wandsworth Prison, rather than, for instance, the high security Belmarsh Prison in south-east London.

One figure reflected that prisoners escaping is rare.

Escapes from prisons - as opposed to from prison vans, for instance - are rarer still.

And escapes by terror suspects from prison are rarer than that.

All of which means the governor of Wandsworth Prison will face the most awkward and excruciating of questions about how on earth this was able to happen.

Tonight, the Ministry of Justice, police forces around the UK, Border Force and no doubt the intelligence services are doing their utmost to try to find this man - and quickly.

Cdr Dominic Murphy, head of the Met Police’s Counter Terrorism Command, spoke to reporters earlier.

He said Khalife escaped dressed in red and white check trousers, a white T-shift and brown boots. He presents a low-risk to the public, but they should call 999 and not approach him directly if they believe they have seen him.

Murphy confirmed all police forces and UK border points have been put on notice.

Airports and ports have been asked to carry out additional security measures, resulting in delays being reported across the UK, including at Heathrow and Manchester airports, as well as the Port of Dover.

Murphy said counter-terror officers were being deployed across London, where the search is being focused.

But he said Khalife "could be anywhere in the country at the moment and we are mindful of the risk of him potentially leaving the UK".

If you're just joining us or need a recap, here's the latest:

• Police have launched a manhunt for terror suspect Daniel Abed Khalife, who has escaped from Wandsworth Prison
• The BBC understands he escaped by strapping himself to the underside of a food delivery van
• Police say he was dressed in checked trousers, a white T-shirt and brown boots when he escaped
• They say he is "low risk" but urged the public not to approach him and to call 999 if they see him
• An alert has been issued to UK ports and airports, with Heathrow and Gatwick airports confirming additional checks are taking place
• Delays have been reported at Manchester and Stansted Airports and the Port of Dover
• Khalife was awaiting trial after being accused of leaving fake bombs at a military base while serving in the Army

We'll bring you more as we get it on this developing story. Stay with us.

Justice Secretary Alex Chalk has posted on social media, external, writing that earlier he "called a meeting with the Governor at HMP Wandsworth to make sure that all necessary steps have been taken to secure the prison and progress the investigation."

Chalk goes on to say he is receiving regular updates.

Image source, @mummypud/X

We've seen a picture of large queues at London's Stanstead Airport.

In a post on X,, external formerly known as Twitter, one passenger complains about the long wait for families with "children/babies".

In a reply to the post, external, Stansted confirms that the immigration hall is managed by Home Office Border Force.

Earlier an alert was issued to UK ports and airports over Khalife's escape from HMP Wandsworth.