A 29-year-old man has appeared in court charged with attempting to murder members of the public and police officers after a crash in Westminster.

Salih Khater, of Highgate Street, Birmingham, faces two counts of attempted murder, following the incident outside the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday.

The Sudanese-born suspect, who is a British citizen, allegedly drove his vehicle into pedestrians and cyclists before deliberately swerving towards police officers.

He then crashed into barriers outside the Palace of Westminster and was arrested by armed officers.

Appearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday, Khater spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth, address and that he was British during the hearing which lasted less than six minutes. 

His lawyer, Johanna Quinn, made no application for bail and Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot remanded Khater in custody.

Prosecutors are treating his case as terrorism due to the method of the alleged attack, the targets selected and the high-profile location, the Metropolitan Police said after charging him on Saturday.

Three people were treated for non-life threatening injuries after the incident.