Wife of Ex-Tory Councillor Imprisoned for Southport Racist Tweet Set for Imminent Release

Lucy Connolly, wife of a former Conservative councillor, was sentenced to 31 months in prison for inciting racial hatred after posting a tweet calling for migrant hotels to be set on fire following the Southport murders. Her tweet, viewed over 300,000 times before deletion, sparked widespread controversy and was part of the unrest after the killing of three young girls in Southport. Despite losing an appeal to reduce her sentence in May, Connolly is expected to be released from HMP Peterborough in August after serving 40% of her term, according to multiple sources. The sentence drew criticism from figures including Nigel Farage and former PM Liz Truss, who described it as excessive and indicative of a politicized two-tier justice system, while Sir Keir Starmer defended the UK court system's decision. Connolly maintained she never intended to incite violence, but the court found otherwise, emphasizing the sentence was meant to punish and deter. Her release is anticipated to be subject to conditions, and friends have noted she looks forward to reuniting with her family.