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”.