David Cameron has issued a plea for tolerance in British political life as he joined Jeremy Corbyn and John Bercow to pay tribute to Labour MP Jo Cox in the West Yorkshire town where she was killed.

Parliament is to be recalled on Monday to allow MPs to pay tribute to the mother of two, who the Prime Minister described as one of the "most passionate and brilliant campaigners" in the House of Commons.

Mrs Cox, who entered Parliament as MP for Batley and Spen in last year's general election, was shot and stabbed to death in the street outside her constituency advice surgery in Birstall on Thursday.

The father of the MP's assistant Fazila Aswat described how his daughter tried to comfort her after the attack, which left her bleeding copiously.

"She tried to help her, she tried to hit (the attacker) with her handbag but he tried to go at her. People came so he followed them and he came back again and shot her again twice," former Labour councillor Ghulam Maniyar told ITV News.

The Herald:

"She said her injury was so bad, and she was in her arms. There was lots of blood. She said 'Jo, get up' but she said 'No, my pain is too much, Fazila'. And I think those were the last words Jo spoke. She could not do anything else. She tried to comfort her."

The sombre-faced Prime Minister, Labour leader and Commons Speaker bowed their heads as they laid bouquets at the foot of Birstall's Joseph Priestley memorial, adding to the impromptu shrine of flowers and messages which has grown up over the past day.

Across the market square from where they stood, police tape still cordoned off the spot where the 41-year-old former aid worker was killed in what Mr Corbyn described as "an attack on democracy".

The Prime Minister said the whole nation was "rightly shocked" at Mrs Cox's death, and called for people to "value, and see as precious, the democracy we have on these islands". Politics was about public service and MPs wanted to "make the world a better place", he said.

And Mr Cameron added: "Where we see hatred, where we find division, where we see intolerance, we must drive it out of our politics and out of our public life and out of our communities.

"If we truly want to honour Jo, then what we should do is recognise that her values - service, community, tolerance - the values she lived by and worked by, those are the values that we need to redouble in our national life in the months and years to come."

Campaigning in the EU referendum remained suspended following Mrs Cox's death, with Stronger In announcing that they will extend the pause in national campaign events to Saturday. Unite union leader Len McCluskey cancelled a planned EU speech on Monday in a mark of respect to the murdered MP.

Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have announced that they will not contest the by-election resulting from her death, giving Labour a probable free run at retaining the Westminster seat which she won with a majority of 6,057 last year.

In an apparent reference to the referendum campaign, German chancellor Angela Merkel urged British politicians to " draw limits" around the language used in political debate, warning that otherwise "radicalisation will become unstoppable".

Speaking alongside the Prime Minister in Birstall, Mr Corbyn described Mrs Cox as "an exceptional, wonderful, very talented woman, taken from us in her early 40s when she had so much to give and so much of her life ahead of her".

The Labour leader paid tribute to the "truly wonderful" statement made by Mrs Cox's husband Brendan, which he said was a message that "in her memory we should try to conquer hatred with love and with respect".

Mr Bercow said that in little over a year in the Commons, Mrs Cox had impressed him with her passion, commitment, ability and "quite extraordinary hard work".

"Evil cannot be allowed and will not be allowed to triumph over good, and we just have to underline our determination as politicians across the spectrum that free speech and the right of people to go about their business and the pursuit of principle will continue, and it will not be dulled or dimmed or cowed in any way by people who think that violence and the spirit of hatred can be allowed to triumph," said the Speaker.

Media from across the world had gathered in Birstall market square to witness the rival party leaders stand shoulder to shoulder in memory of Mrs Cox.

Walking together, Mr Corbyn, Mr Cameron and Mr Bercow all carried white bouquets, while Leeds Central MP Hilary Benn and Commons chaplain Rose Hudson-Wilkin brought red floral tributes.

Each stood solemnly in front of the memorial as they placed their flowers in turn.

On the card attached to his bouquet, Mr Cameron wrote: "Jo, a loving mother and wife, a passionate MP and campaigner. You died serving your constituents and country. We hold your family in our prayers. You will never be forgotten."

Mr Corbyn wrote: "In loving memory of a wonderful, passionate and committed woman. Her life was dedicated to justice and human rights and proud to represent Batley and Spen."

A man arrested following Thursday's attack remains in custody.

Vote Leave has announced it is suspending major campaign events tomorrow, such as a planned rally in Birmingham, but door-to-door leafleting at a local level will continue.