Keir Starmer releases statement after Charlie Kirk shot dead at Utah university

Kirk was shot dead at Utah Valley University

Shots were fired at an event at Utah Valley University in Orem where the 31-year-old was speaking.

CNN reports that Kirk was answering a question about transgender mass shooters in America.

At 12:25 local time, a “single shot rang out in the quad near the food court on the Utah Valley University Orem Campus as Mr. Charlie Kirk began speaking at his planned rally,” Scott Trotter, senior director of Public Relations at Utah Valley University in Orem, told the BBC.

It was later confirmed he had died of his injuries.

Politicians around the world have reacted to the news included UK PM Keir Starmer who released a statement this evening.

He wrote on X: "My thoughts this evening are with the loved ones of Charlie Kirk.

"It is heartbreaking that a young family has been robbed of a father and a husband.

"We must all be free to debate openly and freely without fear - there can be no justification for political violence."

Kirk's death was officially announced by Donald Trump who took to Truth Social to confirm the news.

The US president said: "The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie.

"He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!"

Video footage circulating online shows the moment of the shooting. Kirk can be seen under a white ten emblazoned with the words “THE AMERICAN COMEBACK” and “PROVE ME WRONG”, surrounded by students.

A fervent Trump supporter, Kirk was best known for founding Turning Point USA which seeks to spread conservative ideas to students on US campuses. With millions of followers, he was one of the biggest conservative influencers in the US.