THE House of Commons met in "heartbreaking sadness" and "heartfelt solidarity" to pay tribute to Jo Cox MP, with several MPs breaking down in tears.

Commons Speaker John Bercow recalled Parliament from recess so MPs could commemorate Mrs Cox, who was fatally shot and stabbed as she prepared to hold a constituency surgery in Birstall, West Yorkshire on Thursday.

The House met today and a red rose and a white rose was placed in Mrs Cox's usual place on the Labour benches, while MPs of all sides wore a white rose as a mark of respect.

Mr Bercow said the killing of the Labour MP for Batley and Spen- "in this manner, of this person, our democratically elected colleague" - was "particularly shocking and repugnant".

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: "We have lost one of our own and our society has lost one of our very best."

Mr Corbyn said the "horrific act" has shocked and saddened the whole country, but the country has also "learnt something of the extraordinary humanity and compassion which drove her political activism and beliefs."

The Labour leader and Prime Minister David Cameron also paid tribute to the "heroes" who tried to save Mrs Cox.

Mr Cameron spoke of the sadness the country felt at the killing of the "loving, determined, passionate and progressive politician". He said: "We are here today to remember an extraordinary colleague and friend. Jo Cox was a voice of compassion whose irrepressible spirit and boundless energy lit up the lives of all who knew her, and saved the lives of many she never, ever met."

Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat leader and Westmorland and Lonsdale MP, campaigned alongside Mrs Cox to help child refugees fleeing the Syrian civil war and other conflicts.

Mr Farron told the Commons: "For me and for millions of others the snatching away of a wife and a mother, hugely loving and hugely loved, is what has moved Britain to stand in collective grief this last few days.

"Others who knew Jo well have commented on her huge achievements in her career before Parliament and the time she served in this last 13 months as an outstanding Member of Parliament."

The Preston-born MP said: "Her legacy is one of building bridges and not walls, of getting this Lancastrian to wear this white Yorkshire rose, of combining passion in what she believed in with kindness in how she expressed it.

"Can we all agree now that that is how our politics shall be conducted? "We are shocked and we are heartbroken at her loss."

Looking at Mrs Cox's husband Brendan and her children, who watched from a side gallery in the Commons, Mr Farron said: "On behalf of my party, on behalf of everyone in Cumbria, I want to say that our enduring love and sympathy is with Jo's family."

Ahead of the Westminster gathering, Barrow-born MP Cat Smith, who represents Lancaster and Fleetwood, said: “My only regret is that I didn’t know Jo better. As we entered Parliament together just over a year ago I knew instantly she was a bundle of energy, passion and Yorkshire grit all packed into one – petite at five foot – woman.

"In the early days we joked about clothes, getting lost around the maze of corridors and adjusting to life as a new MP but soon I came to realise she was smart, compassionate and incredibly knowledgeable. It’s been a pleasure I will forever treasure to sit in the chamber and listen to Jo speak on Gaza and human rights.

“I can’t begin to understand how we can ever get over the shock and the grief of losing Jo so violently and so suddenly. It’s apparent she was surrounded by love – her husband Brendan’s plea for love to defeat the hate just hours after losing his wife is testament to Jo – she picked a good one in Brendan! I hope that her children will always know that their mum was a beautiful person inside and out, that she wouldn’t have wanted the hate that killed her to win, and for that to happen we must show though love that a new kinder politics is possible – and quite frankly necessary.”