7/7 London terror attack victims remembered at 20th anniversary service
Four coordinated attacks on three tube trains and a double-decker bus killed 52 people and left several hundred injured in the worst single terrorist atrocity on British soil.
Keir Starmer and the royals were joined by Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London; the home secretary, Yvette Cooper; survivors, emergency responders and bereaved relatives at the commemorative ceremony.
Starmer and Khan laid wreaths at the 7 July memorial in Hyde Park at 8.50am on Monday, to coincide with the time that the first bomb went off.
They were joined by officials including the Metropolitan police commissioner, Mark Rowley, and the chief constable of the British Transport Police, Lucy D'Orsi, who also laid floral tributes.
Survivors and relatives of those killed in the 7 July bombings spoke during the memorial service about how the areas involved in the attacks have changed in the past 20 years. They bowed at the altar after four candles – signifying the four sites of the bombings – Russell Square, Aldgate, Edgware Road and Tavistock Square – were carried through the cathedral by emergency services representatives.
Ellie Patsalos, the wife of Prof Philip Patsalos, who lost a leg in the blast between King's Cross and Russell Square stations, spoke about Russell Square's history.
She said: 'Here, men and women seek understanding and their search for truth challenges the ignorance which casts so much darkness over our world.'
Tony Silvestro of the British Transport Police, who was at Aldgate station on 7 October helping survivors, talked about different immigrant communities who had worked and settled in the area, saying: 'Now, it is a busy crossroads of business and commerce with people of all faiths and none, trading and dealing with the rest of the world.'
Rev Julie Nicholson, the mother of Jennifer Vanda Ann Nicholson, who died aged 24, said Edgware Road had been a refuge for Huguenot migrants and had a diverse ethnic history. She said it was 'cosmopolitan and proud of its ethnic mix and diverse resources'.
George Psaradakis, the driver of the number 30 bus that was blown apart in the 2005 attacks, spoke about Tavistock Square and its memorials dedicated to victims and campaigners including Gandhi.
Sign up to First Edition
Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters
after newsletter promotion
In between each reflection, the choir sang a short piece.
Graham Foulkes, the father of David Foulkes, who was killed in the 7 July attack at Edgware Road Station, said London has remained a place of hope through the people that live and visit the city.
He said: 'These four pieces of London epitomise what is great about this city: an international crossroads of diversity and ingenuity, tolerance and respect, challenge and opportunity.
'When four bombs exploded on 7 July 2005, lives were destroyed and the flame of hope faltered for what seemed like an eternal moment.
'For many people, nothing was the same again and yet everything was the same because the good which is in Londoners and the countless visitors whom they host at any given moment is not erased by hatred or threat but – rather – is fostered to produce a harvest of hope for each generation.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
13 minutes ago
- BBC News
Dorset MP supports council push for higher illegal parking fines
An MP has supported a council's upcoming motion to "to urgently raise the cap on fines for illegal parking" which has been causing disruption to coastal Dem MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole, Vikki Slade, raised the issue in Parliament, saying towns like Poole and Bournemouth "are blighted with illegal parking".This comes after Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council officers towed away a record-breaking number of vehicles over the weekend. The government has been contacted for a comment. "The government controlled level of fines clearly does not act as a deterrent," said Lib Dem Jeff Hanna, who represents Bournemouth West."Just £35 outside of London, but £80 in a London Borough – if paid within [two] weeks. "BCP is as suburban as any London Borough."Mr Hanna said 1,702 penalty charge notices (PCN) had been issued and 18 cars were lifted and removed on 12 and 13 July, despite sufficient spaces available in car parks "within walking distance of the beach".He said towing came at a cost to the tax payers and the release fee of £105 was "nothing like enough to cover the actual cost". In London the release fee is £280."So the difference comes from your council tax", he Hanna said a motion would be coming to the next BCP council meeting from two Boscombe councillors, calling for yet more lobbying of the government on the level of penalties. 'Growing frustration' Following her question the House of Commons, Ms Slade wrote to Alex Norris, Minister for Local Growth and Building Safety, urging for exploring solutions with local authorities and a review of illegal parking fines that "have been frozen for 20 years"."I would highlight that these drivers are not just breaking the law—they are endangering public safety," she wrote, citing the blocking of pavements, "depriving disabled people and families of safe passage" and "obstructing residents from accessing their own homes"."This is a source of growing frustration for residents, who rightly expect their council to act. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
20 minutes ago
- BBC News
Portsmouth council votes to make play parks more accessible
Play parks in Portsmouth could become more disability-friendly after city councillors voted to draw up plans and find funding for accessibility comes after months of campaigning by mum Sophie, whose daughter Millie is a wheelchair user. Sophie said changes were "desperately needed" and accessibility in Portsmouth parks was currently "basically non-existent". The city council said in a statement: "We are absolutely committed to continuing to explore every opportunity to ensure that our play parks are as accessible and inclusive as possible. Many of the council's 124 parks contain at least one piece of inclusive equipment, such as adapted swing sets, trampolines and wheelchair-friendly roundabouts, the council said. But Sophie said despite new equipment being added, children like her daughter still were not able to physically access it because of the woodchip flooring. "Pretty much all of the Portsmouth parks are on woodchip," she said. "So, for wheelchair users, or those that use walkers - they can't get to that equipment."Woodchip is not wheelchair friendly due the loose, uneven surface, and government guidance states that it should not be used for accessible surfaces."They've spent a lot of money, but haven't done a particularly good job," she said. "Portsmouth City Council need to start holding their own public consultations before they spend money on making mistakes." Labour councillor Charlotte Gerada tabled the motion after meeting with Sophie. She said she had heard from many other families facing the same barriers and wanted the council to push up its standards. But she said replacing the woodchip could be "very costly", and they were not expecting every single park in the city to be made accessible due to a lack of council resources. "We understand it's expensive to put a playpark in and equipment isn't cheap, when new equipment is being rolled out or new parks are being put in, inclusive design should be at the heart of it," she said. At the council meeting, Ms Gerada said the council had consulted play experts - specialist council officers - about the parks' equipment. "But the play experts are children," she said. "Other nearby towns like Fareham and Havant do have much more accessible playparks."There's still very little, minimal, equipment in Portsmouth."A city council spokesperson said: "Over the past two decades, Portsmouth's play spaces have been transformed, with more diverse and inclusive equipment, despite no central government funding being made available for the past 16 years." You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Telegraph
26 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Miliband to unleash new gas plants to back up patchy wind and solar
Ed Miliband has opened the way for a fleet of new gas-fired power stations to back up Britain's wind and solar farms. He has told the National Energy System Operator (Neso) – the UK's grid operator – that by the end of the decade it must keep 40 gigawatts (GW) of spare generating capacity on standby for days when wind and solar cannot keep the nation's lights on. The request is part of a system known as the capacity market, where companies are paid to keep generating capacity on standby for days when renewables output plummets or demand surges. The capacity market already costs British consumers about £1.3bn a year – but this will surge to £4bn by 2030 as reliance on renewables increases, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has said. Mr Miliband's letter to Neso has told it to ensure it has 40GW-worth of back-up generating capacity on the system, roughly equating to the output of 35-40 large gas-fired power stations. About two thirds is expected to come from gas and the rest from batteries, interconnectors and other sources. The riches available to power companies via the capacity market has caused a mini-boom in construction of gas fired power plants. Neso's list of projects seeking grid connections has more than 100 new gas-fired power stations planned around the UK. Most are smaller than the large power plants built in the past but designed to be more flexible, meaning they can ramp their output up and down according to demand and the price of power. They make their profits partly from being paid to be on standby and partly from operating only when power prices surge to unusually high levels – as often happens when low winds reduce windfarm output. Driving up costs Adam Bell of Stonehaven, an energy consultancy, said the system drove up costs for consumers. 'The capacity market is driving a boom in construction of gas fired power stations but these plants push up prices for everyone in the wholesale market. That's why subsidy costs are rising. 'We know that they are able to make excessive returns and they are also given 15 year capacity market agreements which locks in these effects for too long.' John Constable, director of the Renewable Energy Foundation, said that the mix of subsidies supporting renewables were collectively costing the UK £25.8bn a year. 'Renewables are intrinsically unreliable,' he said. 'Under the capacity market consumers are forced to provide an indirect subsidy to wind and solar to pay for a shadow fleet of gas turbines and batteries to guarantee security of supply. This results in two parallel electricity systems and so reduces grid productivity and increases costs.' The move coincides with a separate announcement from Mr Miliband regarding contracts for difference (CfDs) – a different subsidy mechanism. These support construction of renewables such as wind and solar farms by guaranteeing a minimum price for the power they generate. Mr Miliband said that future projects would now be able to apply for CfDs before even getting planning consent – and could then claim subsidies for 20 years instead of the previous 15 years. He said such changes would help deliver more clean power and support thousands of jobs. However, CfDs added £1.8bn to bills last year – equating to about £100 on the average household bill according to parliamentary reports. This too is set to surge, in line with the planned increase in wind and solar farms. Energy UK, trade body for power suppliers, has backed the changes to the CfD scheme. A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson confirmed the capacity market system would add £21 to the average household bill this year and said future power plants would be built so that they could eventually be converted to run on green hydrogen or fitted with carbon capture technology. 'The Capacity Market mechanism ensures our electricity supply is secure and meets demand. From this auction onwards, unabated gas plants must have a credible plan to decarbonise to be eligible.' Doug Parr, policy director at Greenpeace UK, said the Capacity Market was a 'rip-off' for consumers and urgently needed reform. He said: 'Our energy market is rigged in favour of gas. It sets the price of electricity 98pc of the time, while only providing around 30pc of our electricity. It's a complete rip off for consumers.'
