PM brands knife crime 'horrific'

Knife amnesty failed to prevent stabbings

Monday, 19, Mar 2007 12:00

The recent spate of stabbings is "horrific" the prime minister said today, following the deaths of five young people in less than a week.

Speaking at a city academy in east London today, Tony Blair said tougher sentencing would help to target and reduce crimes involving gangs, guns and knives. The maximum sentence for carrying an offensive weapon was recently raised from two to five years' imprisonment.

The new Violent Crime Reduction Act will allow courts to pass "much tougher sentences" on criminals, he said, adding: "We need specific measures directed at gangs, guns, knives and specific measures that are targeted at the hardest-to-reach families and that is something we will be targeting in the weeks ahead."

Although the government maintains the violent crime rate is falling, critics point out the murder rate among teenagers is rising considerably.

On Saturday, 15-year-old Adam Regis of Plaistow became the latest victim, following the fatal stabbing of 16-year-old Kodjo Yenga in west London on Wednesday. In Manchester, three men were fatally stabbed over the weekend.

The Liberal Democrats argue the recent spate of incidents is mirrored in communities across the country, and have hit out at the government for failing to take knife crime seriously enough.

Sir Menzies Campbell said the government needs to recognise carrying a knife is as dangerous as carrying a gun and mandatory sentencing should reflect this.

"We also urgently need to challenge the culture that makes it acceptable to carry knives," he added.

A knife amnesty conducted last summer collected more than 100,000 weapons.