Southport protests latest: Murder suspect, 17, appears in court after far-right riots erupt across UK

A 17-year-old boy has appeared in court charged with the murder of three girls after far-right riots erupted across the UK overnight as protests in Southport spread.

The teenager, from Banks in Lancashire, who cannot be legally named because of his age, has been charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and possession of a bladed article. He appeared in the dock at Liverpool Magistrates’ Court on Thursday morning and is set to appear at Liverpool Crown Court later in the day.

It comes as more than 100 people were arrested after a few hundred far-right demonstrators joined the “Enough is Enough” demonstration in London on Wednesday evening, with flares thrown towards Downing Street and the crowd heard chanting “we want our country back”.

Scenes of unrest also broke out in Hartlepool overnight – where police made several arrests, several officers were injured and a car was set on fire – as well as in Manchester and Aldershot.

Merseyside Police have made a fifth arrest after violent disorder erupted in Southport on Tuesday following a horrific knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on Hart Street the previous day. Bebe King, six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, nine, were killed, while eight other children were injured along with two adults.

Have you been affected by this incident? Email tara.cobham@independent.co.uk