The families of Lucy Letby’s victims told her “you are nothing” and “you are evil” as the serial child murderer refused to appear in court for sentencing.

Letby, the most prolific child serial killer in modern British history, faces a whole life order when Mr Justice Goss hands down her sentence at Manchester Crown Court later.

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More than a dozen relatives of Letby’s victims sat in the public gallery for the hearing on Monday and eight jurors returned to see the sentencing.

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British prime minister Rishi Sunak told reporters on Monday it was “cowardly that people who commit such horrendous crimes do not face their victims”.

The nurse murdered seven babies and tried to kill six more while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital neonatal unit between 2015 and 2016.

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In a statement read to the court, the mother of Child A, who was murdered by Letby, and Child B, who she attempted to kill, said: “You thought it was your right to play God with our children’s lives.”

She said after the death of Child A they feared for their second child and made sure a member of the family was always with her, but “made a mistake” and started to believe what happened to the first child was a “tragic event that couldn’t be stopped”.

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She added: “Little did we know you were waiting for us to leave, so you could attack the one thing that gave us a reason to carry on in life.”

In the statement, made on behalf of her and her partner, she said: “Maybe you thought by doing this you would be remembered forever, but I want you to know my family will never think of you again.

“From this day you are nothing.”

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Screenshot from footage of the arrest of Lucy Letby. Photo: Cheshire Constabulary/PA.

The mother of Child C choked back tears as she told Letby in her absence: “At least now there is no debate that, in your own words, you killed them on purpose. You are evil. You did this.”

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The woman added: “I blame myself entirely for his death. I still live with the guilt that I couldn’t protect him during pregnancy or in his short life.”

Nicholas Johnson KC, prosecuting, opened his remarks by confirming that the defendant “has refused to come into court”.

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The mother of Child E, who died, and Child F, who survived, told the court the nurse’s refusal to appear was “just one final act of wickedness from a coward”.

She added of Letby’s time giving evidence: “I would like to thank Lucy for taking the stand and showing the court what she is really like once the ‘nice Lucy’ mask slips.

“It was honestly the best thing she could have done to ensure our boys got the justice they deserve.”

Another parent said hospital bosses told her a police probe was “out of the question” after the death of her child, a full-term baby girl referred to as Child D, on June 22 2015.

She was the third infant death in a fortnight – equalling the total number of deaths on the neonatal unit for the whole of 2014.

Child D’s mother told the court she asked for her medical notes and met with doctors and management from the Countess of Chester Hospital.

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She said: “We got a solicitor and I wanted the police involved. At that stage I was told this was not a criminal matter so the police was out of the question.”

Letby has joined the list of the UK’s most twisted child killers, including the Moors murderers Ian Brady and Myra Hindley and the so-called Angel of Death paediatric nurse Beverley Allitt.

The prosecutor told the court Letby’s offending was a “very, very clear case” for a whole-life tariff to be imposed.

He said the murders qualified on a number of grounds, including that they were premeditated and they involved an elements of “sadistic conduct”.

Whole-life orders are the most severe punishment available in the UK criminal justice system, for those who commit the most serious crimes.

A hand-written note found by police in Ms Letby’s home. Photo: Cheshire Constabulary/PA.

Last week, the 33-year-old refused to return to the dock as the jury continued to return verdicts and the court was told she did not want to take any part in her sentencing hearing, and would not follow the hearing via video-link from prison.

But late on Sunday, a Government source suggested “lawful enforcement” could be used as a last resort to ensure Letby attends if it is considered necessary, reasonable and proportionate.

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“Lucy Letby should be in court to hear society’s condemnation of the enormity of her crimes, expressed by the judge,” the source told the PA news agency.

“If that requires the use of lawful enforcement, so be it.

“If she continues to refuse, that will only strengthen our resolve to change the law as soon as we can.”

Mr Justice Goss said the court has no power to force a defendant to attend a sentencing hearing but the Government has vowed to give judges the power to do so.

Earlier this year, Justice Secretary Alex Chalk said the Government is “committed” to changing the law so criminals are compelled to attend their sentencing hearings – following the non-attendance of the killers of Olivia Pratt-Korbel, Zara Aleena and Sabina Nessa.