Westminster attacker Khalid Masood spent his last night at a budget hotel in Brighton and told staff that London "wasn't like what it used to be", it has been claimed.

Before he ploughed a rented car through pedestrians on Westminster Bridge and fatally stabbed a police officer outside Parliament, the terrorist—born Adrian Elms, in Kent—reportedly stayed over at the Preston Park Hotel in the East Sussex seaside town.

A source told The Sun he chatted with staff at the £59-per-night venue and told them he was "off to London today".

Detectives traced him to the hotel thanks to a receipt left in the car he crashed into railings outside Parliament, the paper reported. The Metropolitan Police declined to confirm whether its officers had visited the hotel.

The source said: "He said he lived above a guitar shop in Birmingham but he’s not originally from the Midlands and had a London accent. But he said London wasn’t like what it used to be. Police told us later it was definitely the Westminster attacker."

Masood's attack killed four people including PC Keith Palmer, whose family described him as "dedicated to his job and proud to be a police officer, brave and courageous".

An American, 54-year-old Kurt Cochran, was killed as he celebrated his 25th wedding anniversary with wife Melissa, who was injured.

Aysha Frade, who worked as a sixth form Spanish teacher at the nearby DLD College London, also died in the attack.

In pictures: Westminster attack Show all 9 1 /9 In pictures: Westminster attack In pictures: Westminster attack An air ambulance lands after gunfire sounds were heard close to the Palace of Westminster in London PA wire In pictures: Westminster attack MPs wait until the situation is under control in Westminster. 'The alleged assailant was shot by armed police,' David Lidington, leader of the House of Commons, told the house. BBC News In pictures: Westminster attack Crowds gather in Westminster after shooting incident, which police are treating as terror attack BBC News In pictures: Westminster attack Police were also called to an incident on Westminster Bridge nearby AP In pictures: Westminster attack Early reports indicate the car, which mounted the pavement on Westminster Bridge and mowed into around a dozen people, was the same vehicle which then rammed into the railings of the Palace of Westminster, just around the corner Reuters In pictures: Westminster attack Security sources described the suspected assailant as a middle-aged Asian man, who is understood to have left the car before attacking a police officer with a seven-to-eight inch knife PA wire In pictures: Westminster attack Police have asked people to avoid the immediate area to allow emergency services to deal with the ongoing incident AP In pictures: Westminster attack One woman has died and a number of others, including the police officer, have been hurt, according to a junior doctor at St Thomas' Hospital Reuters In pictures: Westminster attack At least three gun shots were heard by those inside Westminster, and proceedings in the House of Commons have been suspended AP

A British national, whose mother was Spanish and father was Cypriot, she lived in London with her two young daughters and her husband.

She was walking to meet her daughters from school when the attack happened.