The government is launching a new coalition, aimed at tackling knife crime around the country.
Bringing together a number of public and community organisations, health service partners, technology companies, and anti-knife crime campaigner Idris Elba, the coalition will develop a deep understanding of the causes of knife crime, which will in turn drive government policy and accountability. This comes as Downing Street hosted the first annual Knife Crime Summit, which saw the Prime Minister meeting with the Home secretary, Idris Elba, and other campaigners.
Prime Minister Kier Starmer said:
“As Director of Public Prosecutions, I saw first-hand the devastating impact that knife crime has on young people and their families. This is a national crisis that we will tackle head on.
“We will take this moment to come together as a country – politicians, families of victims, young people themselves, community leaders and tech companies - to halve knife crime and take back our streets.”
Whilst the coalition will support the government by pulling together evidence that will help to guide government policy, work has already begun to strengthen the legislation surrounding knife crime. There is legislation underway that will see a ban on ninja swords, whilst the law surrounding the sale of knives will be strengthened to ensure that dangerous weapons don’t end up in the hands of anyone, especially young people.
Yvette Cooper, Home Secretary, also commented:
“We will not sit back while precious lives are being lost and young people’s futures destroyed. That is why we are making it a mission for the country to halve knife crime in a decade.
“Getting weapons off our streets and making sure there are tough and clear consequences for violence are vital. And we also need to prevent young people heading down this path - that means offering young people more hope, more opportunities.
“This coalition is crucial - bringing together those who have fought so passionately for change and who know how devastating knife crime can be and why we need action now.”
The announcement of the new coalition comes as part of the government’s 10-year plan to tackle knife crime, and will build on the Young Futures programme that the Home Office has set out to get young people out of crime.
Image credit: iStock
