David Merritt implicitly criticizes PM's exploitation of terror attack

The father of one of the victims of the London Bridge Terror attack has sharply criticized the politicization of his son’s death.

According to Press TV, writing in the Guardian, David Merrit, the father of Jack Merritt, argues that: “Jack would be livid his death has been used to further an agenda of hate”.

Merritt senior’s comment comes on the heels of Prime Minister, Boris Johnson’s call to review prison sentencing guidelines following the terror attack on London Bridge.

The PM’s kneejerk reaction to the terror attack elicited widespread criticism, notably from the former Head of the Parole Board, Nick Hardwick.

Hardwick told BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme that suggestions of an “easy solution” to the failings leading up to the terror attack are “fundamentally mistaken”.

“Budget cuts to prisons and the probation service have made the British public less safe”, Hardwick added.

Describing his son as “angry, frustrated, selfless and stubborn”, Merritt senior said that “Jack would understand the political timing with visceral clarity”.

“He [Jack] would be seething at his death, and his life, being used to perpetuate an agenda of hate that he gave his everything fighting against”, Merritt senior added.

Meanwhile, Jack’s friend, Leanne O’Brien, reinforced Merritt senior’s position on Facebook by writing that Jack “opened so many doors for those that society turned their backs on”.    

The forceful political intervention of the Merritt family, in addition to Leanne O’Brien, is being widely interpreted as a blow to the Tory party and their hardline national security agenda.

ME