Moment car explodes on road where Keir Starmer’s £2m home was ‘targeted in arson attack’ – as counter-terror cops quiz suspect, 21, over fires

This is the shocking moment a 4×4 burst into flames in Sir Keir Starmer‘s street in an explosion now being investigated by Britain’s counter-terrorism police.

Exclusive MailOnline footage shows the dark blue Toyota Rav 4 engulfed in flames as firefighters fought the blaze on VE Day last Thursday.

The owner of the vehicle, a neighbour of the Prime Minister, is understood to have thought that the fire started because of a faulty battery. The car was completely destroyed.

But after two suspected firebomb attacks on properties in North London linked to the Prime Minister on Sunday and Monday, Scotland Yard’s SO15 counter terrorism command have stepped in. 

The video emerged hours after a suspect was arrested. The 21-year-old was held in the early hours of this morning on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life. He remains in custody.

The Metropolitan Police have not confirmed where the arson suspect was arrested. 

Great grandmother Linda, 80, who lives on Countess Road told MailOnline: ‘At 3am on Thursday morning I woke up to the sound of people – delivery men apparently – screaming “fire, fire” and the sky outside was lit up.

‘And I thought OMG what’s going on. And I looked out and saw the fire.

‘I saw the car on the road was on fire. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was so bright. Blazing.

‘I saw two fire trucks arrive and it took them a long time to control the blaze.

‘The tree and the front wheel of a neighbours’ bike was scorched as well.

‘The car belongs to our next door neighbours but they’re not the people who [live in] Starmer’s house’.

Exclusive MailOnline footage shows the dark blue Toyota Rav 4 engulfed in flames as firefighters fought the blaze on VE Day last Thursday.

Exclusive MailOnline footage shows the dark blue Toyota Rav 4 engulfed in flames as firefighters fought the blaze on VE Day last Thursday.

A witness to the car fire told Metro today: ‘There were bangs and the a huge fire. My bike was parked next to the car it’s tyre was split by the heat. It was very shocking.’

Another said: ‘It was crazy there were proper big flames you could feel the heat coming off.’  

The 21-year-old was held after the doors of two homes linked to the Prime Minister in north London both suffered fire damage within 24 hours of each other, one in the early hours of yesterday and another in the early hours of Sunday.

There was also a vehicle fire on the same street as the latest door attack, last Thursday, that is being connected to Starmer in a potential arson spree targeting the PM.

Scotland Yard is probing whether the blazes are linked and said today that the arrest relates to the three incidents.

Counter terror cops launched an investigation into the latest blaze at the premier’s £2million townhouse yesterday morning where neighbours had heard a ‘loud bang’.

Officers were searching gardens nearby for a projectile with one neighbour telling MailOnline it may have been a firebomb attack. 

Starmer, his wife Victoria and their children moved into an apartment in 10 Downing Street after the election last July.

Investigators believe that the fire at the previous home may have been started deliberately in the middle of the night. 

It is currently being ‘treated as suspicious’ as investigations continue into the cause of the blaze. 

The PM has thanked the emergency services with his spokesperson saying they were unable to comment further.  

FIRE ONE: The front door and brickwork at Sir Keir Starmer's north London townhouse has been left charred following a suspected arson attack in the early hours of Monday morning

FIRE ONE: The front door and brickwork at Sir Keir Starmer’s north London townhouse has been left charred following a suspected arson attack in the early hours of Monday morning

FIRE TWO: Scotland Yard is also probing another blaze at another property in north London linked to the Starmer just 24 hours earlier (pictured), on Sunday

FIRE TWO: Scotland Yard is also probing another blaze at another property in north London linked to the Starmer just 24 hours earlier (pictured), on Sunday

Sir Keir and his wife, Victoria, were previously seen clapping for the NHS from outside the home in London, during the height pandemic in May, 2020

Sir Keir and his wife, Victoria, were previously seen clapping for the NHS from outside the home in London, during the height pandemic in May, 2020

A Met Police spokesperson said: ‘The 21-year-old was arrested in the early hours of Tuesday, 13 May on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life.

‘He remains in custody.

‘The arrest relates to three incidents.

‘On Monday, May 12, at 1.35am, police were alerted by the London Fire Brigade to reports of a fire at a residential address in NW5.

‘Officers attended the scene. Damage was caused to the property’s entrance, nobody was hurt.

‘As a precaution and due to the property having previous connections with a high-profile public figure, officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command are leading the investigation into this fire. Enquiries are ongoing to establish what caused it.

‘The investigation team are also considering two other incidents – a vehicle fire in NW5 on Thursday, May 8 and a fire at the entrance of a property in N7 on Sunday, May 11 – and are investigating whether they may be linked to the fire in NW5 on May 12. 

‘All three fires are being treated as suspicious at this time, and enquiries remain ongoing’.

Sources told MailOnline that Scotland Yard’s SO15 counter terrorism command’s investigation is understood to be routine given the high-profile nature of the owner. 

The fire is said to have only damaged the porch of the property with the door and brickwork charred and black. The blaze did not spread further indoors.

It is not known if the property was occupied at the time, but no one was hurt.

Forensics officers were combing for evidence outside the property all day after the blaze broke out at 1.11am. 

Neighbour Charles Grant, 66, told MailOnline officers had been searching his garden for a projectile that someone may have thrown into the rear of his property, but they did not find anything. 

‘From what other people on the road have told me is that someone tried to throw a firebomb into Keir Starmer’s house – but nobody was hurt, and I don’t think the damage was too extensive,’ he said.

‘The front door of Starmer’s house is shut and still standing. The door and the brickwork is charred and black and it smells of burnt stuff.

‘The police said the damage is not extensive – just needs a bit of paintwork.’

London Fire Brigade (LFB) confirmed there has been ‘damage’ caused to the front of the home with the flames being brought under control by 1.33am. 

A next door neighbour described the fire as ‘scary’ and told how he had been woken up in the early hours by the attack.  

‘It was a loud bang, what sounded like glass shattering. It was scary,’ the male neighbour, who did not wish to be named, told The Sun.

According to the PM’s entry in the register of ministerial financial interests, Sir Keir rents out the family home.

Pictures show the front porch area charred where just five years earlier Starmer and his wife Victoria stood to applaud the NHS during the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Metropolitan Police is investigating the blaze, with a spokesman for the force saying officers were alerted at 1.35am.

Sales director Cory Adshead 48, who has lived on the road adjacent to Starmer for three years, told MailOnline: ‘At 1am I heard police sirens.

‘It was a loud bang, what sounded like glass shattering. It was scary,’ the male neighbour, who did not wish to be named, told The Sun. 

FIRE ONE: The attack on Monday morning did not get into the house

FIRE ONE: The attack on Monday morning did not get into the house

FIRE ONE: The black paint is blistered from the flames in what one neighbour told MailOnline may have been a firebomb attack

FIRE ONE: The black paint is blistered from the flames in what one neighbour told MailOnline may have been a firebomb attack

Police forensics officers seen near the home of Sir Keir Starmer yesterday

Police forensics officers seen near the home of Sir Keir Starmer yesterday

Police officers were pictured looking through rubbish bins for any potential evidence

Police officers were pictured looking through rubbish bins for any potential evidence 

One neighbour told MailOnline how officers told him they were searching for a projectile that may have been thrown into his garden, but they did not find anything (Pictured: A forensics officer is seen near to Starmer's home)

One neighbour told MailOnline how officers told him they were searching for a projectile that may have been thrown into his garden, but they did not find anything (Pictured: A forensics officer is seen near to Starmer’s home)

‘And police lights were flashing through the bedroom window. When I woke up and went to work the next morning there were no police cordons. But they went up – according to my wife – between 12pm and 2pm this afternoon.

‘I mean it’s pretty weird that would be the one door in the area to catch on fire at that time at night.

‘But I don’t know if anyone is living in the house or night.’

A 56-year-old woman who has lived in the area for more than 12 years said: ‘It is generally a very safe area.

‘I feel sorry if anyone has been targeted or attacked in this way.’

It’s not clear what caused the blaze. However, a number of forensics officers in blue and white overalls were seen in the street on Monday afternoon.  

A spokesperson for LFB added: ‘The Brigade was called at 0111 and the fire was under control by 0133.

‘Two fire engines from Kentish Town Fire Station attended the scene.’

A forensics dog and officer comb for evidence in the rain outside of Starmer’s north London townhouse 

Neighbours said they have seen forensics officers outside the property all day

Neighbours said they have seen forensics officers outside the property all day

A forensics team is pictured working inside a police cordon as an officer looks on

A forensics team is pictured working inside a police cordon as an officer looks on

A forensics officer talks into a dictaphone as they survey the scene

A forensics officer talks into a dictaphone as they survey the scene 

The PM’s official spokesman said: ‘I can only say that Prime Minister thanks the emergency services for their work and it is subject to a live investigation. So I can’t comment any further.’

News of the blaze came as the PM revealed the Government’s plan to crack down on migration rules. 

Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Sir Keir warned Britain was at risk of becoming an ‘island of strangers’ as he unveiled a string of new policies to tackle illegal immigration. 

Speaking to journalists from Downing Street, the PM deployed the Brexit campaign’s ‘take back control’ slogan as he vowed to end the ‘betrayal’ of relying on cheap foreign labour.

However, doubts are already being raised about whether the rules will have a big enough impact – with the Conservatives criticising the failure to introduce an annual cap on numbers.

The announcement comes less than a fortnight after Reform UK rode a wave of rising public anger on immigration to triumph in the local elections, delivering a string of damaging defeats to Labour.

Sir Keir is now scrambling to blunt the threat from Nigel Farage’s party by projecting a tough stance on the issue – and deliver lower net migration figures over the rest of the parliamentary term.

Home Office aides are said to fear that without deep-rooted reforms, annual net migration will settle even higher than the 340,000 level projected by the Office for National Statistics.

Sir Keir has accused the Tories of overseeing an explosion in numbers while in power, saying the system seemed ‘designed to permit abuse’ and was ‘contributing to the forces that are slowly pulling our country apart’.

The PM estimates the new migration reforms will cut migration figures by 100,000 per year.

It's understood the home belongs to Sir Keir Starmer, who rents it out. The PM is pictured holding a press conference into immigration

It’s understood the home belongs to Sir Keir Starmer, who rents it out. The PM is pictured holding a press conference into immigration 

This flagship Immigration White Paper includes a 10-year wait for UK citizenship,  instead of five.

Those who work and pay taxes could also jump the queue for residency rights, while public service employees and top-skilled professionals will be fast-tracked.  

And in a new clampdown, the language test bar is also set to be raised, while migrants will now require a university degree to gain a ‘skilled worker’ visa. 

Labour also plan to close loopholes that allow companies to blame a ‘skills gap’ to bring in cheap work.

Sir Keir underlined his determination that the changes will mean ‘migration numbers fall’ but added: ‘If we do need to take further steps… then mark my words we will.’

However, he refused to guarantee that net migration will fall every year from now, saying: ‘I do want to get it down by the end of this Parliament significantly.’

Estimated net migration to the UK stood at a provisional total of 728,000 in the year to June 2024, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Some 1,207,000 people were estimated to have immigrated to the UK during these 12 months, while 479,000 were estimated to have emigrated, making a net migration figure of 728,000.

This is down 20 per cent from a record 906,000 in the previous 12 months for the year to June 2023.

Sir Keir’s critics, including Reform UK’s Richard Tice, have called for him to introduce a specific cap on numbers.

‘There’s no target, no number that can be measured against,’ he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

The Conservatives have said the PM is ‘trying to take credit for recent substantial reductions in visa numbers that resulted from Conservative reforms in April 2024’.

Following his speech, the PM also met with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson in Downing Street.

The pair discussed how the UK and Sweden could forge tighter bonds and continue to support Ukraine.  

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