Prime Minister to meet with family of Horbury children killed in Corfu

Wakefield MP Mary Creagh challenged him on a government decision not to grant the family legal aid for the children’s inquest during Prime Minister’s Questions today.

Christianne Shepherd, aged seven, and her six-year-old brother Robert, died while on holiday in Corfu in October 2006 with their father, Neil,and his then partner, now wife Ruth.

They had been on a half-term break at the Louis Corcyra Beach Hotel.

Tour operator Thomas Cook was cleared of all responsibility in relation to the deaths of the two children and awarded £1m in damages by the High Court in 2013.

Last Friday Thomas Cook unsuccessfully applied to have an inquest into the chidrens’ deaths stopped during a pre-inquest review hearing in Wakefield.

After the hearing, Ms Creagh criticised the government’s decision not to grant legal to the family to allow them to be legally represented during the inquest which is due to be held next January.

Today Mr Cameron said he would meet with Mr Shepherd and his wife, and the children’s mother Sharon and stepfather Paul Wood, Ms Creagh and the Ministry of Justice.

For more on this story see Friday’s Express.