THE MP for Torridge and West Devon Geoffrey Cox is among those caught up in a lockdown of Parliament, as police respond to what they have described as a ’terrorist incident’, that left at least four people dead.

Police were called at approximately 2.40pm to reports of an incident in Westminster Bridge, SW1, which they said is being treated as a firearms incident.

The Post spoke to Mr Cox, who is in the midst of the lockdown of Parliament. He said he is well and is being kept out of harm’s way at the moment with a number of colleagues. The Parliament building has been placed in lockdown with a number of armed police inside the grounds and building.

Mr Cox said: “There are armed police inside the members’ lobby and chambers and we are all in complete lockdown whilst police try to resolve the situation.

“I am sat here with some of my colleagues and we have been locked into the chambers as a precaution — I can assure you we are all well.

“At the present time we have been told that one man attempted to attack a group of school children on Westminster Bridge, he was subsequently dealt with by the police and another got through the gates somehow and ran onto the estate, I believe he was shot.

“We are still on lockdown as a third man is believed to be armed and on the estate and police are in the process of searching for him.”

A spokesperson for Metropolitan Police said: "Officers — including firearms officers — remain on the scene and we are treating this as a terrorist incident until we know otherwise."A spokesperson from North Cornwall MP Scott Mann's office said: "We are hoping that everyone is safe and we are waiting until we hear what the facts are."

Any members of the public who may have images or footage of the incident are asked to send them to www.ukpoliceimageappeal.co.ukMark Rowley, the national lead for Counter Terrorism Policing and the Acting Deputy Commissioner, confirmed it has been declared a terrorist incident and said Counter Terrorism Command is carrying out a full scale investigation.He added: "The attack started when a car was driven over Westminster Bridge, hitting and injuring a number of members of the public and three police officers who were on their way back from a commendation ceremony."The car then crashed near to Parliament and at least one man - armed with a knife - continued the attack, trying to enter Parliament."Sadly - I can now confirm that four people have died. That includes a policeman who was protecting Parliament from the attack and one man we believe to be the attacker who was shot by a police firearms officer."The officer's family have been made aware."At least 20 people have been injured."As part of long established and well rehearsed plans, Parliament was locked down and the Met responded in line with our plans for a marauding terrorist attack."That response included uniformed and specialist trained firearms officers."We have an ongoing operation - and whilst we currently believe there was only one attacker - I am sure the public will understand us taking every precaution in locking down and searching the area as thoroughly as possible."I know that the officials working within Parliament and the public completely understand why we need to do this and I thank them for their patience and support."This investigation has the full weight and expertise of the Counter Terrorism Command behind it. If there are people who saw the events unfold but haven't yet spoken to police please get in touch with us."A crime scene will remain in place in the affected areas in Westminster - it is vital that we carry out a painstaking investigation to recover all possible evidence."Looking forward, throughout the rest of the day including when people are commuting home and over the days that follow, the people of London will see extra police officers - both armed and unarmed - out on our streets."This includes our officers working longer hours and extra shifts and with our colleagues at British Transport Police and the City of London."We can call on the support of the military should we need to at a future point."We are also in the process of opening our specialist Casualty Bureau to help those people who are worried that friends or family may have been caught up in the attack."We are reaching out and engaging with all communities across London to help reassure them."Our strength as a city is our ability to stand together at such terrible times."If anyone sees anything suspicious or that causes them concern please do contact us - don't hesitate."My thoughts are with all those who have been affected by today's attack - and as a service we have lost one of our own as he acted to protect the public and his colleagues."This is a day that we had planned for - that we all hoped would never happen - but sadly it is now a reality."The Met Police will continue to do all we can to protect the people of London."