Claim 53021b2aChecked 21 Jul 2026
TrueOn the truth scale
“Less than 48 hours ago, Henry Nowak’s family stood on the steps of Southampton Crown Court.”
—Darren PaffeyLabourLab / Southampton Itchen·Engagements·03 Jun 2026Factual · historical current chronological
Reasoning & Evidence21 Jul 2026
The evidence strongly supports this claim.
1. **Timing:** Vickrum Digwa was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 21 years on Monday, 1 June 2026 at Southampton Crown Court for the murder of Henry Nowak. The speech was delivered on Wednesday, 3 June 2026 at approximately 12:42. The gap between Monday 1 June and Wednesday 3 June is within 48 hours.
2. **Family statement on the steps:** Multiple sources confirm that Henry Nowak's father, Mark Nowak, supported by family members, stood on the steps/outside Southampton Crown Court after the sentencing and delivered a statement. The Independent's video article explicitly states: "Mark Nowak stood on the steps of Southampton Crown Court on Monday (1 June) and said: 'We do not want [Henry's] death to be used to create further division, hatred or tension. We want his story to help make our streets safer for everyone.'" The BBC's live blog also references "Mark Nowak's statement on the steps of the court on Monday this week."
3. **Quote accuracy:** The Hampshire Chronicle and other outlets report the full statement matching the words cited in the speech: "We want to use Henry's heart-breaking story to make change for the better. We do not want his death to be used to create further division, hatred or tension. We want his story to help make our streets safer for everyone." (Minor wording variation: "help make our streets" vs "make our streets" — but the substance is identical.)
The claim is accurate: the family did stand on the steps of Southampton Crown Court on 1 June 2026, which was less than 48 hours before the speech on 3 June 2026.
Sources: The Independent (https://www.independent.co.uk/tv/news/henry-nowak-father-keir-starmer-video-b2988702.html); BBC News live blog (https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c4g81y540y1t); BBC News (https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvgz23p8117o); Hampshire Chronicle (https://www.hampshirechronicle.co.uk/news/national/26156980.sikh-man-jailed-life-minimum-21-years-knife-murder-student/); BBC News (https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62ek7lk553o)
From speech
Less than 48 hours ago the family of Henry Nowak stood on the steps of Southampton Crown court and gave a courageous and dignified statement in which they said: “We want to use Henry’s heartbreaking story to make change for the better. We do not want his death to be used to create further division, hatred or tension. We want his story to make our streets safer for everyone.” Does the Prime Minister agree with me and my constituency neighbour, my hon. Friend the Member for Southampton Test (Satvir Kaur), that the violence we saw whipped up on the streets of Southampton last night, the criminal damage to innocent people’s homes, and the injuries to 11 police officers are the total opposite of what Henry’s own family clearly and powerfully called for?
Sources opened
| [1] | independent.co.uk |
| [2] | bbc.co.uk |
| [3] | bbc.com |
| [4] | lbc.co.uk |
| [5] | bbc.com |
| [6] | bbc.com |
| [7] | bbc.co.uk |
| [8] | independent.co.uk |
| [9] | telegraph.co.uk |
| [10] | bbc.com |
| [11] | independent.co.uk |
| [12] | bbc.co.uk |
| [13] | bbc.com |
| [14] | the-independent.com |
| [15] | bbc.com |
| [16] | hampshirechronicle.co.uk |
| [17] | uk.news.yahoo.com |
| [18] | yorkpress.co.uk |
| [19] | bbc.co.uk |