The family of Sir David Amess have visited the church where he was killed to see some of the many tributes left in his memory.

Sir David's widow, Julia, was comforted by family members as she spent about 10 minutes reading messages at Belfairs Methodist Church in Leigh-on-Sea.

The family have said their hearts are shattered - but called for people to "set aside hatred" and show love.

The Queen has agreed to award Southend city status, after a long-standing campaign by Sir David, the prime minister confirmed.

The father-of-five's death has sparked an outpouring of grief, not only within his local community in Essex where he had been an MP for nearly 40 years, but from across the country.

The church where he was killed is surrounded by large piles of flowers, heart-shaped balloons and framed pictures, and people continued to lay tributes on Monday.

Earlier, the widower of Jo Cox - the MP who was murdered by a right-wing extremist five years ago - said hearing the news about Sir David took him immediately back to the moment he learnt of his wife's death.

The BBC has been told he was referred to the counter-terrorist Prevent scheme some years ago, but was never a formal subject of interest to MI5.

Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab said he had received "three threats to life and limb" over the past two years - but he does not want to "allow those who attack our democracy" to win.

"But while individual arrangements should rightly remain a matter for individual MPs and police, the prime minister shares the concerns with a number of MPs and ministers that this attack cannot get in the way of democracy."?

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