British police on Sunday named the two victims who died in the London Bridge terror attack, as their families paid glowing tributes to the pair.
, 25, from Cambridgeshire in eastern England, and 23-year-old Saskia Jones of Warwickshire in the West Midlands, were both killed by convicted terrorist Usman Khan during his rampage Friday, the Metropolitan Police said.
Mr Merritt, a course coordinator at Cambridge University's criminology institute, and Ms Jones, a volunteer, died as they helped host an event near London Bridge to mark five years of a prisoner rehabilitation initiative.
Khan - a participant in the programme during some of his roughly eight years of prior imprisonment for terrorism offences - showed up armed with two knives and stabbed five people.
One of the two people killed during the London Bridge attack was named as 25-year-old Jack Merritt. Source: Supplied
He was shot dead by police while wearing a fake explosives vest on London Bridge.
One of those injured has been released from hospital while two are still receiving treatment.
In a statement released through police, Mr Merritt's family paid tribute to "our beautiful, talented boy" who they said had died "doing what he loved".
"Jack was an intelligent, thoughtful and empathetic person who was looking forward to building a future... and making a career helping people in the criminal justice system," they said.
Ms Jones's family described her as "a funny, kind, positive influence at the centre of many people's lives" who had recently applied for a police graduate recruitment programme, hoping to specialise in a victim support role.
Flowers and a pictures are left in memory of Jack Merritt, the first person named as a victim of Friday's terror attack. Source: AAP
"She was intent on living life to the full and had a wonderful thirst for knowledge, enabling her to be the best she could be," they added.
'A lot of action'
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Sunday the security services were stepping up monitoring of convicted terrorists released early from prison, as the attack became embroiled in the election campaign.
The prime minister revealed officials were scrutinising around 74 people with terrorist convictions who had been released early from prison, like Khan.
"They are being properly invigilated to make sure there is no threat," Mr Johnson told the BBC.
"We've taken a lot of action as you can imagine in the last 48 hours."
Members of the public have been hailed as heroes for preventing even greater loss of life by tackling Khan - one armed with a 1.5-metre narwhal tusk and another with a fire extinguisher.
The incident came two years after Islamist extremists in a van ploughed into pedestrians on London Bridge before attacking people at random with knives, killing eight people and wounding 48.
'Keep you safe'
After searching on Saturday two properties in central England believed to be linked to Khan, police have said they believe he was acting alone and are not seeking anybody else.
But IS has released a statement claiming responsibility for the attack.
Khan, a British national, had been handed an indeterminate sentence for the protection of the public in 2012 of at least eight years in prison.
He was part of an eight-man network inspired by Al-Qaeda who had plotted to bomb targets including the London Stock Exchange, and planned to take part in "terrorist training" in Pakistan.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson with British Home Secretary, Priti Patel at the London Bridge crime scene. Source: EPA
But his sentence was quashed by the Court of Appeal in 2013 and he received a new 21-year term, comprising a custodial sentence of 16 years and five years on conditional release.
He was then conditionally released from jail around a year ago under so-called licensing conditions after serving about half of his jail term.
Khan has become a contentious political issue ahead of Britain's December 12 election, with Johnson blaming the previous Labour government for changing the law in 2008 to allow for the early release of prisoners.
The Conservative leader vowed that if he reclaims power this month he will end early release for terrorist offences and introduce minimum 14-year sentences, with some convicted never to be released.
The proposals were not in the Conservatives' formal manifesto issued last Sunday.
Mr Johnson penned an article setting out the new stance in The Mail on Sunday newspaper, under the headline: "Give me a majority and I'll keep you safe from terror".
'Knee-jerk reactions'
Critics have hit out fiercely at Johnson for appearing to politicise Friday's attack - including the father of Jack Merritt.
The victim was a course coordinator at Cambridge University's criminology institute, which was hosting its event by London Bridge to mark five years of its prisoner rehabilitation programme.
Khan, a participant in the initiative during his imprisonment, attended the event armed with two knives, stabbing five people there.
David Merritt wrote on Twitter that his son as "a beautiful spirit who always took the side of the underdog".
"We don't need knee-jerk reactions," he added in a series of messages responding to the political furor around the attack.
