Memorial service marks fifth anniversary of Westminster Bridge attack

Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick, Assistant Commissioner Matt Jukes and Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu were among those attending the service.

The Commissioner, Mr Jukes, Mr Basu, the Speakers of both Houses of Parliament, together with the Reverend Prebendary Jonathan Osborne, and the Reverend Canon Tricia Hillas, the Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons, also joined members of PC Palmer’s family at an earlier, private service at the Palace of Westminster in his memory. The Commissioner laid a wreath and gave a reading from the Book of Revelation.

PC Keith Palmer was described as “a husband and father who had joined the force because he wanted to make a difference to people”.

He was a much-respected member of the MPS’s Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection (PaDP) and prior to joining PaDP, he had been in the Territorial Support Group based in Catford. Friends and colleagues remember PC Palmer’s passion for Charlton Athletic football club, which honoured him after his death by replacing his regular seat at The Valley Stadium with a white chair bearing his warrant number.

Although unarmed, PC Palmer stopped a knife-wielding terrorist from entering the Palace of Westminster and subsequently received the George Medal for his actions.

Dame Cressida said: “As we mark the fifth anniversary of the Westminster attack, it is right that we take time to remember all the victims who lost their lives on that dreadful day. PC Keith Palmer paid the ultimate price defending the UK’s heart of democracy, and alongside him we remember Aysha Frade, Kurt Cochran, Leslie Rhodes and Andreea Cristea.

“Today, the thoughts of the entire Met Police are with the families and loved ones of those who died, as well as the many survivors of this terrible attack, including members of our own Met Police family.

“Sadly, the threat from terrorism remains. However, we are inspired by the courage displayed on that day by so many people. It is the memory of the victims and the survivors of all the attacks that drives us in policing to continually improve, so that we can do all we possibly can to prevent further attacks from happening again.”