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The future of constituency surgeries is once again being debated in light of the killing of a second MP in five years.

Conservative MP Tobias Elwood told BBC Radio Four's The World Tonight that no MP should have face-to-face meetings with constituents following the fatal stabbing of Sir David Amess.

“I would recommend that no MP has a direct surgery," he said.

"You can move to Zoom...you can actually achieve an awful lot over the telephone."

He added that much could be done more quickly for constituents without "having to wait for the surgery date".

Meanwhile the Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle has said it was essential that MPs were able to retain their relationships with constituents.

"We have got to make sure that democracy survives this," he told the BBC's Newsnight programme.

"I did my surgery tonight because people are not going to stop us.

"The one thing we have is a relationship with our constituents.

"What David was doing today, I have done tonight."

Sir Lindsay said police were contacting all MPs to check on their security in the wake of Sir David's killing.

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The head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales has said he is "shocked and saddened" to hear of the killing of Sir David Amess, who was raised as a Catholic.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, said: "I pray for the repose of his soul, and for his family and constituents who grieve for him. May he rest in peace.

"This death throws a sharp light onto the fact that our Members of Parliament are servants of the people, available to people in their need, especially in their constituencies.

"This horrific attack, as David was undertaking his constituency surgery, is an attack on our democratic process and traditions.

"David carried out his vocation as a Catholic in public life with generosity and integrity.

"His untimely death is a great loss."

The Conservative group leader on Southend Borough Council Tony Cox has spoken of his devastation on learning of Sir David's death.

"I'm just numb. Words fail to describe the situation we find ourselves in," he said.

"I don't think it's fully registered yet what's happened, but one thing that's become enormously apparent is how loved Sir David Amess was.

“He was a great man, a great MP, a respected parliamentarian and respected by his residents. What we cannot lose sight of here is that a wife has been robbed of a husband and five children have been robbed of a father.

“Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this sad time.”

Constituents have gathered to pay tribute to Sir David Amess.

Those attending the Friday night vigil at St Peter's Catholic Church in Leigh-on-Sea rose to pay tribute to the long-serving backbencher.

One held back tears as he stood at the lectern describing Sir David as "a guy who championed everyone's cause, the weak, (he was) a real true gentleman. We'll miss him."

"It's testament that so many of us want to give that nod and heartfelt thanks for the way that he served this town and the people in it," said another.

Others remembered his smile, with one woman saying his death was a "massive" loss.

"He was the best constituency MP you could ever wish for. His heart was in his community," said another constituent.

As you can imagine Saturday's papers are dominated by the death of Sir David Amess.

"A fine public servant" is the strap line on the Daily Telegraph, while the Daily Express carries a quote describing him as a "kind and gentle" politician.

The Southend West MP's campaigning for animal welfare also gets mentioned with many of the papers carrying pictures of him smiling with dogs.

Several papers make the comparison to the murder of Labour MP Jo Cox in 2016 with the Daily Star asking "How could it happen again?"

Read more here

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Boris Johnson has led tributes from the political world for Sir David Amess.

The Prime Minister said he was one of the "one of the kindest, nicest, most gentle people in politics".

Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle said the "much-loved" MP was a "bright light of Parliament".

And Labour's Sir Keir Starmer hailed his "profound sense of public duty".

Fellow Tory MP Andrew Rosindell added that Sir David was his "oldest friend" in Parliament, and he felt "sick inside at what has happened".

You can read more reactions from current and former politicians to Sir David's killing here

Image source, Reuters

What happened in Leigh-on-Sea?

Conservative MP Sir David Amess was stabbed while holding a constituency surgery at Belfairs Methodist Church and "suffered multiple injuries".

Police were called to the scene shortly after 12.05 BST. An air ambulance arrived and Sir David was treated by emergency services workers, but sadly died.

Who was the victim?

Sir David Amess, 69, had been an MP since 1983 and was married with five children. He entered Parliament as the MP for Basildon and held the seat in 1992, but switched to nearby Southend West at the 1997 election.

Raised as a Roman Catholic, he was known politically as a social conservative and as a prominent campaigner against abortion and on animal welfare issues. He has also held a long-running campaign to win city status for Southend.

Who is the suspect?

A 25-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder. The BBC understands the suspect is "a British national who initially appears to be of Somali heritage". The investigation into the fatal attack is being led by counter-terrorism police.

Ione Wells
Westminster Correspondent, BBC News

In a 2020 book Sir David Amess wrote about Westminster politics, he spoke of how increasing attacks and threats towards politicians and their families had "rather spoilt the great British tradition of the people openly meeting their elected politicians."

He wrote: "The British tradition has always been that Members of Parliament regularly make themselves available for constituents to meet them face to face at their surgeries.

"Now advice has been given to be more careful when accepting appointments. We are advised to never see people alone, we must be extra careful when opening post and we must ensure that our offices are properly safe and secure."

Surgeries, and meeting constituents face-to-face in their communities, is a part of the job that many MPs cherish.

But this stabbing has left many MPs and their staff in shock – and reminded them of the risks many are exposed to doing their daily jobs.

Writing in the Guardian after Sir David's death, Labour’s Rhondda MP Chris Bryant said MPs take pride in "making ourselves available to our constituents. Anyone can turn up at our advice surgery, catch us in Morrisons, chat to us on the bus or the train, bend our ear in the rugby club or turn up in central lobby and ask to see us."

But he, echoing many others’ thoughts today, also called for a review of all MPs’ security arrangements, saying "we may have to insist on surgeries by appointment only".

Police have been investigating the scene at the Belfairs Methodist Church this evening and into the night, following the fatal stabbing of MP Sir David Amess.

Members of the press and media companies have congregated in the area, while floral tributes have been left in memory of Sir David.

A 25-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after the attack at the church in Leigh-on-Sea.

Image source, Jonathan Brady/PA Wire

Image source, EPA/ANDY RAIN

Image source, EPA/ANDY RAIN

Image source, EPA/ANDY RAIN

Sir David Amess has been remembered at a vigil held in his memory on Friday evening at St Peter's Catholic Church in Leigh-on-Sea.

About 80 people attended the service and the church fell silent as Father Jeffrey Woolnaugh paid tribute to the Conservative MP.

A lone candle placed outside the church burned and a photograph of Sir David was placed at the front.

Image source, Reuters

Father Woolnough said: "Have you ever known Sir David Amess without that happy smile on his face? Because the greeting he would always give you was that happy smile.

"He carried that great east London spirit of having no fear and being able to talk to people and the level they're at. Not all politicians, I would say, are good at that."

Father Woolnough recounted his own memories of Sir David and said he "died doing the thing he loved, meeting his constituents, his local people".

Those who attended the vigil were invited to light a candle and share their own memories.

Dominic Casciani
Home Affairs Correspondent

We don't know yet what information the Essex Police team who responded to the emergency call were able to establish about the suspect - or whether the 25-year-old said anything to the officers who arrested him.

But by mid-afternoon a full "Gold" command meeting was activated by police chiefs back in London - meaning some of the most senior and experienced leaders of major incidents were sitting around the table.

It was an inevitable decision: the killing of an MP is not an everyday occurrence - and the last time it happened, when Jo Cox was murdered in 2016 - it was an act of terrorism by a far-right extremist.

The purpose of that Gold command was to work through what was known - what needed to be known - and how much of the UK's enormous counter-terrorism investigatory powers would need to be thrown at the operation.

Joining the discussions were representatives from the Security Service, MI5, whose investigators sit side-by-side with detectives on many investigations.

And watching on from government was the Home Secretary Priti Patel - a minister who was finding herself in a tragic situation.

Home Office ministers have to steel themselves to be briefed by the police about awful tragedies. This was closer to home: Sir David Amess was not just Priti Patel's fellow Essex MP - but a personal friend.

Later, she said on Twitter she was personally devastated to hear of his death. But she still had a professional and dispassionate job to do as the minister at the top of policing: asking chiefs how they would be operationally responding.

By 6pm, Essex Police's chief constable BJ Harrington confirmed that colleagues from counter terrorism policing were now taking the lead in the investigation - even though nobody could say for sure whether this was terrorism.

For a crime to be terrorism, detectives would need to be sure there had been an ideological motive to the killing - in effect using violence to influence government and society.

So one of the priorities for those CT officers who were now helping Essex Police was to acquire the suspects communications devices - mobile phones and computers - and look for clues about motivation and mindset.

Any mobile phone seized by the police would also play a second critical role in this first 24 hours of the murder investigation.

A forensic team would aim to electronically track the suspect’s movements in the days leading up to his arrest at the crime scene - and that would lead them to CCTV that would be critical in understanding any plan he had put in place.

By early evening, investigators - apparently still looking for a motive - had at the least established the suspect's identity.

The BBC learnt from government sources that the 25-year-old was a British national - and it appeared to investigators that he was of Somali heritage.

Having established the suspect's identity, a counter terrorism financial investigation team could also become centrally involved.

Debit card transactions can prove a suspect's movements - and uncover more CCTV - and ultimately may link them to anything that's been bought as part of the preparation for the crime.

On Twitter, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge say they are "shocked and saddened" by the killing of Sir David Amess.

Dominic Casciani
Home Affairs Correspondent

The BBC understands from an official government source that the 25-year-old man being held on suspicion of murdering Sir David Amess MP is a British national who initially appears to be of Somali heritage.

Further inquiries are continuing.

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Ed Holmes, a senior speechwriter at the Department for International Trade, has been retweeted hundreds of times, external after he shared anecdotes of what it was like to work with Sir David - who he says gave him his "first proper job".

"Early on, I was absolutely terrified we had forgotten to tell him about an urgent call from David Cameron's office. Couldn't have bothered him less," he says in a tweet. "'Don't worry about that, Edward'. I don't think he ever returned it."

He also talks about searching for an "entire afternoon" for an invitation to a local charity "duck race", and about how Sir David had laughed on one occasion when it was suggested that he could be considered for a ministerial role if he voted a certain way.

"But when he heard someone he knew in the constituency was seriously ill, he would call everyone he could think of," Holmes adds. "No votes to be had, no cameras in sight. I think that's when I admired him the most."

Image source, Getty Images

Residents choked back tears as they spilled onto the streets of Leigh-on-Sea after the killing of their MP Sir David Amess.

He was "so kind to everyone" said Rofique Ali, a local Conservative Party member, who described the MP as his best friend in the world.

Resident Melanie Harris left flowers at the scene with a card that said: "You were always a pleasure to speak to. Thank you for restoring my faith in politicians."

Alysha Codabaccus, 24, said: "This kind of thing just doesn't happen around here. This is a nice quiet area, it happened in a church, there's a school just up the road."

Kevin Buck, a Conservative Southend councillor who worked with Sir David for 10 years, said he was "shocked and numb".

"I just can't believe he was with us here this morning, and not here now."

Read more about the reaction in Leigh-on-Sea here

Laura Kuenssberg
Political editor

Image source, Reuters

"It could happen to any one of us."

Those were Sir David Amess's own words, describing the danger that MPs can face, and the awareness they all carry, that their work can - in rare and terrible circumstances - put them in harm's way.

In his published diaries of a long life as an MP, Sir David wrote of the creeping risks: checking the locks, taking care not to meet people alone, alert to what could go wrong.

We expect the MPs we elect to see us in person, not to hide behind Parliament's ornate gates and wood-panelled walls.

But, increasingly, the job has been accompanied by abuse, intimidation - and risk for MPs and their staff.

You can read Laura Kuenssberg's blog in full here

As we've just reported, Home Secretary Priti Patel has ordered an immediate review into MPs security in the wake of the killing of her Conservative colleague Sir David Amess.

She has also spoken to the Commons Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle.

Speaking to Sky News about the security of MPs, Hoyle said: "We don't want a knee-jerk reaction now.

"We are getting reassurances out there to MPs, and in fairness, chief constables up and down this country are speaking to MPs to reassure them.

"It's about reassuring people at this stage, and then afterwards we will take further measures if we need to."

Just a reminder that Sir David is the first serving MP to be killed since Labour's Jo Cox was murdered in 2016.

In the aftermath of the killing of Sir David Amess, the Home Secretary Priti Patel has ordered an immediate review of MPs security arrangements.

A spokesman for Patel said: "The Home Secretary has asked all police forces to review security arrangements for MPs with immediate effect and will provide updates in due course."

Earlier she said she was "devastated" by the attack on her Tory colleague, saying Sir David was "a kind and loyal friend".

She also said that questions were "rightly being asked about the safety of our country's elected representatives".

Patel has also spoken to the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle.

Image source, PA Media

Brian Wheeler
BBC Politics

Dealing with the problems of constituents has always been a central feature of life as an MP.

Nearly all of them set aside time on days when Parliament is not sitting – usually Fridays – to meet constituents.

These meetings – called surgeries – are sometimes held in their constituency office, or a church hall or community centre. Some MPs insist that constituents book in advance but others encourage people to drop in.

The local MP is sometimes the last port of call for people with long-running disputes over issues like housing and immigration. MPs employ a team of caseworkers to help deal with them.

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer has said that today is a "dark and shocking day" and has called on people to "come together in response to these horrendous events".

"We will show once more that violence, intimidation, and threats to our democracy will never prevail over the tireless commitment of public servants simply doing their jobs," he said.