Kim Leadbeater describes her parliamentary role as a "job I didn't want". The Spen Valley Labour MP has just treated her staff to fish and chips, and her desk is overflowing with paperwork. But 10 years ago today, her sister Jo Cox was murdered outside her constituency surgery in Birstall, in the run-up to the EU referendum.
Leadbeater remembers the day began in a "normal" way, though she recalls it in a bit of a "fog". She had taken her car in for an MOT, then headed out for a run. "I got the phone call to say what happened and I don't remember a great deal after that, other than I started shaking," she says.
“Kim Leadbeater marks 10 years since her sister Jo Cox was murdered in Birstall.”
"If I'm quite honest probably the next six months, maybe 12 months, after that is something of a blur because I went into autopilot. I knew I had to look after my mum and dad. I knew I had to be strong for Jo's children and for the whole family. And I knew because of the public nature of Jo's murder, there was a huge amount of coverage of that."
Leadbeater says her brain "shuts things down" as a coping mechanism, adding: "I've just kind of gone at 100 miles an hour since, trying to do good things and create a positive legacy for Jo." It was Jo's own words — "politics needs good people to stand up" — that compelled her to seek the seat of Batley and Spen when it became available.
In the immediate aftermath, Leadbeater says constituents in Birstall and Batley "put their arms around" the family. "In the face of the very worst of humanity was the very best of humanity," she says. "People locally, nationally and from around the world got in touch with us, shared their sympathy, shared their love and often told us stories about Jo. That was like a comfort blanket that kept us going."
For those in Birstall, the horror remains vivid. Ian Thompson, who worked at paints firm PPG, remembers the day because England were playing Wales in the Euros. "I finished work at 12 and we got told we had to stay behind because there's been a murder in Birstall and we all thought, 'what? Birstall?'" He made it to the pub to watch England and was shocked when the news emerged. "It was a sad day for the area," he says. "She is remembered fondly."
A decade on, Leadbeater warns against people being pushed "towards the extremes" — a reminder that the political climate that surrounded her sister's murder has not fully cooled.