Lucy Letby should be forced to appear in court and face the victims of her crimes when she is sentenced on Monday, the Government has said.

A source told The Telegraph prison officers may use “lawful enforcement” to ensure that the child killer cannot remain in her cell when the judge hands down his sentence.

Letby has vowed to refuse to appear in court to hear the punishment she will face, along with statements from the families of the seven babies she killed.

Since the guilty verdicts were announced on Friday, calls have been growing for action to ensure that the 33-year-old former nurse is forced to appear when her sentence is read out on Monday.

On Sunday night, a government source told the Telegraph that if Letby refused to attend of her own accord she could be compelled to do so.

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

In further developments:

Currently, judges can order criminals to appear, and prison officers are able to use reasonable force to take them to the court. But it is believed some guards are reluctant to use force because of the risk of legal action if they are seen to have overstepped what is “reasonable”.

Alex Chalk, the Justice Secretary, has said the Government is “committed” to changing the law so that criminals are compelled to attend their sentencing hearings. Action is expected as soon as the King’s Speech in the autumn. The law would give extra protection to prison officers.