Full text of Newlove widow statement

An MP representing the family of Garry Newlove is leading calls for an inquiry into why teenager Adam Swellings was bailed hours before he took part in the gang murder of the father-of-three.

Helen Jones, Warrington North MP, announced today she would be writing to the Attorney General to establish why Swellings, 19, was released from jail.

She also condemned the culture of underage-drinking, which both Mr Newlove's widow and Peter Fahy, chief constable of Cheshire Police have blamed as a key factor in Mr Newlove's murder.

Ms Jones said: “We have laws for keeping people like that from committing further crimes and they weren’t enforced.”

Yesterday, Swellings, of Crewe, Cheshire, was convicted of murder along with fellow gang members Stephen Sorton, 17, of Warrington, and 16-year-old Jordan Cunliffe, formerly of Warrington.

After the verdicts yesterday, it emerged Swellings had been released from custody for an assault just hours before the attack.

He was freed on condition he stayed away from Warrington but Swellings never left the town. Instead he met up with Sorton and Cunliffe and began their drink and drugs binge.

“What was done to ensure he complied with that condition?" asked Ms Jones. "My understanding is that Adam Swellings had a history of offences and breaching court orders. There are serious questions that need to be asked about this.”

The MP said she would also attempt to raise the issue in business questions today in Parliament.

She also called for a change in the way society treats underage drinking, and rounded on supermarkets for their "deliberate, irresponsible retailing" of cheap alcohol to youngsters.

She said: “Underage drinking is not just a problem for Warrington. It is a problem for everywhere.

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