Knife Crime: Children and Young People

Bayo Alaba Excerpts

Thursday 20th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Bayo Alaba (Southend East and Rochford) (Lab)]

I thank the hon. Member for Huntingdon (Ben Obese-Jecty) for securing this vital debate. Knife crimes among children and young people are some of the most devastating incidents to occur in our constituencies. Last summer in Southend East and Rochford there were multiple machete attacks on our beaches and high streets. That was incredibly troubling, and I set about meeting the families and businesses affected. I am also currently in the process of commissioning a youth summit to see what we can do, and to find the gaps in the community and the things we do not know, through the eyes and voices of our young people.

As hon. Members may or may not know, Essex is in the top 10 counties for reported knife crime. As parents, friends, and family members of young people, I am sure we all feel sheer horror when we hear about incidents involving knives, and every single offence is one too many. As a young man, as a boy, I was attacked a number of times with a knife, and I was very lucky to survive. It broke my mum’s heart, knowing that she could not protect me every time I left the house, and that is one reason why—I have not shared this story publicly too widely—I have spent the last 20 years mentoring and supporting young people. I can see how hard it is traversing neighbourhoods, and as my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Erdington (Paulette Hamilton) said, sometimes someone is just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Knife crime ruins lives, and this debate is particularly tough having known people, including childhood friends, who lost their lives from knife crime or drug crime. I have sat in the living room talking to families who have lost a young person, and that is a scenario and setting that no one ever wants to go through. The pain that you see and feel emanating from the parents and family because of the loss of that young person is something you just cannot describe.

I wholeheartedly welcome our Labour Government’s commitment to halve violent knife crime in a decade, and we have not wasted any time to deliver on that commitment. Ronan’s law introduces stricter online sale regulations to prevent weapons from falling into the hands of young people. That includes new offences such as possessing a knife or an offensive weapon with intent, and it increases the maximum penalty for manufacturing, selling, hiring or lending prohibited weapons. It creates new offences of child criminal exploitation and cuckooing, which are often associated with county lines.

It is essential not only that we ban the selling of machetes and sharp weapons, but that we make kitchen knives safer and have a strategy of prevention. Young people in Southend East and Rochford, much like in other coastal communities, face a unique set of challenges. The conversation today is not just about urban communities, or even immigration; it is about validation, self-esteem, boredom and role models, or the absence of them. Such things are huge contributing factors to what we see playing out, with the violence that our young people are enacting on each other. We have high unemployment and high levels of health inequality, and we often feel the brunt of the lack of transport and connectivity. The changes that the Government are proposing cannot come quickly enough.

Anti-social Behaviour: East of England

Bayo Alaba Excerpts

Tuesday 11th March 2025 Westminster Hall

[Alice Macdonald]

I completely agree. Sometimes antisocial behaviour can be dismissed as trivial incidents, but we all know that they are not trivial and that they cause a real disturbance to many of our residents. I also know that my constituents are continually frustrated by antisocial and inconsiderate parking. I am sure that other Members here also have issues raised with them on that, whether it is obstructing pavements or blocking driveways. Indeed, research by the British Parking Association in the last few years has revealed that this is one of the biggest frustrations British people experience in their daily lives.

I want to be clear that Norwich is a great place to live; indeed, we have seen communities rallying round to support each other after antisocial behaviour. But a small minority can cause misery for many, so I welcome the measures that the Government set out yesterday in the Crime and Policing Bill. I particularly welcome the new powers for police to seize vehicles causing havoc in our city centres, removing the prior need for a warning to be given. Recently, e-bikes and e-scooters have been subject to a police crackdown in Norwich, with 12 of them being seized in just one day.

The new respect orders will also give the police and local councils powers to ban persistent offenders from town centres or from drinking in public places, such as high streets and parks. That will make a real difference in areas such as Prince of Wales Road in Norwich. It is home to a lot of vibrant nightlife, but businesses there have often made complaints about antisocial behaviour. I hope the Minister can reassure us that for serious and persistent offenders who affect our constituents day after day, respect orders will indeed give authorities the powers they need.

Of course, many of these measures will only be effective if we have police on the streets to enforce them. I pay tribute to the police and police staff in Norwich and Norfolk, and across the country, who work really hard. That is why I welcome the Government’s commitment to recruit 13,000 extra neighbourhood police officers and police community support officers, with a named and contactable officer in every community. I have met many of the local officers in our area through safer neighbourhoods teams meetings and they work incredibly hard, but often they are stretched to cover the areas they are supposed to cover.

I welcome the fact that the Government have increased police funding by £1.1 billion, which is a 4.1% increase in real terms, including funding to kickstart the recruitment of new officers. Norfolk Constabulary is set to receive £235 million in 2025, which is an increase of £12.8 million on 2024. However, can the Minister reassure me that the recruitment of 13,000 neighbourhood officers and the funding package being provided will result in more police officers on Norfolk streets, so our residents can see and be reassured by their presence?

Under the Conservatives, neighbourhood policing was slashed in communities across the country, but I know that Labour is determined to change that. However, there are still real challenges. The chair of Norfolk Police Federation spoke out earlier this year about the difficulties facing the police forces in our county, including officers leaving or having to take time away from the workplace because of the huge pressures being placed on them. Could the Minister also talk about the action we are taking to support the police at work and address retention issues?

[Mr Bayo Alaba (Southend East and Rochford) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend for allowing me to intervene.

In my constituency of Southend East and Rochford, we share many of the same issues that my hon. Friend is experiencing in her constituency in Norwich. We have a high street that needs to be reanimated and low levels of antisocial behaviour. Nevertheless, as my hon. Friend said of her community, there is also a great community in my constituency, so I wholeheartedly support what she is saying.

I also encourage people to visit Southend East and Rochford, because it is really important that communities are reanimated by people visiting the area and spending time in a community. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is important that we create the conditions in our high streets, towns and city centres that enable them to thrive? And does she support the Government in their crackdown on crime?

[Alice Macdonald]

I do agree and, as my hon. Friend will be aware, I recently visited Southend and saw what a vibrant community it is. I believe that the new measures will benefit not only the east of England as a whole but the entire country.

I will just conclude my point about police and police financing. As the Minister will be aware, the chief constable of Norfolk is also the national policing lead for finance, and he has raised a number of issues with me, including some no-cost ideas that could be explored to relieve pressure on the police, such as the flexibility for the police to recruit the right workforce mix. I hope that in her response to the debate, the Minister will speak about that issue and perhaps outline some of her conversations with the chief constable.

As I have said, Norwich is a wonderful place to live and we can all play our part in ensuring that our fine city stays that way. It is vital that the fight against antisocial behaviour is carried out at all levels. I welcome the work of Sarah Taylor, the excellent police and crime commissioner for Norfolk. I also welcome the work of Norwich City Council’s excellent Love Norwich campaign, which aims to tackle environmental antisocial behaviour, with a range of measures to tackle fly-tipping, littering and graffiti.

Prevent: Learning Review

Bayo Alaba Excerpts

Wednesday 12th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Dan Jarvis]

I am grateful to the hon. Lady for the way in which she has approached the statement and for the sensible and reasonable points she made, as she always does. She made an important point about the role and remit of the independent commissioner. I hope that she, like all hon. Members, would acknowledge that Lord Anderson is superbly qualified to fulfil the role. He is an expert in this area of public policy, and he brings authority, credibility and integrity to the role. The Home Secretary and I look forward to working closely with him but, of course, I reiterate the point about his independence.

The hon. Lady rightly raised the importance of the work that is taking place across Government on counter-extremism. That work is being progressed very closely with other Departments, specifically the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. It is a priority for this Government and we will endeavour to update the House in the relatively near future about its progress.

Finally, I am grateful to the hon. Lady for referencing the work of the defending democracy taskforce. This initiative was set up by the previous Government, but we think it is fundamental to ensuring that those people who step forward to serve as elected representatives, whether in this House or in local government as police and crime commissioners or metro Mayors, are able to perform their duties without fear or favour. The remit of the defending democracy taskforce will ensure the most effective cross-Government response, working with operational partners and law enforcement so that those elected representatives can go about their duties unencumbered by the completely unacceptable harassment and intimidation that we continue to see.

[Mr Bayo Alaba (Southend East and Rochford) (Lab)]

Sir David Amess was a hugely respected parliamentarian of massive popularity across all parties and in his wider community. He worked every day with true compassion to improve the lives of residents in Southend West and Leigh, Southend East and Rochford and more widely. My constituency neighbour, my hon. Friend the Member for Southend West and Leigh (David Burton-Sampson), and I bring that legacy with us as we continue the hard work of representing our communities.

I am pleased that the Prevent learning review published today has looked into the attack on Sir David Amess. I commend the hard work of his family, my hon. Friend the Member for Southend West and Leigh, the former MP for Southend West and the Home Office, who are committed to preventing such horrific attacks in future. We must do everything in our power to prevent anything so tragic from ever happening again. My thoughts and prayers will always be with his friends and family.

[Dan Jarvis]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his words. Let me reiterate what he and the shadow Home Secretary said about Anna Firth. We are grateful for her support and the contribution that she continues to make.

With your indulgence, Madam Deputy Speaker, my hon. Friend has just provided me with an opportunity to offer one further personal recollection of Sir David. He responded to my maiden speech in 2011, which I made from the Opposition Benches. It was, by any metric, a pretty average maiden speech, but the warmth of his response has stayed with me forever. From that point, every time we saw each other we would reminisce about how overly generous he had been about it. For that, and for many other reasons, I will always be incredibly grateful to David Amess.

Southport Attack

Bayo Alaba Excerpts

Wednesday 5th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Dan Jarvis]

The hon. Member has asked me to be crystal clear, so I will be. The perpetrator has been found guilty of a terrorism-related offence, and will therefore be considered to be a registered terrorist offender. He will be subject to the associated sentencing procedures, and will be treated as a person convicted of an offence under the Terrorism Act 2000.

[Mr Bayo Alaba (Southend East and Rochford) (Lab)]

I am speaking on behalf of my constituency neighbour, my hon. Friend the Member for Southend West and Leigh (David Burton-Sampson), who has been working closely with the Home Office and, most important, with the family of the late Sir David Amess. It makes me angry to listen to the litany of errors that occurred when agencies were not necessarily talking to each other, but I welcome this announcement nevertheless. The Amess family and the city of Southend deserve it, and more. Can the Minister assure me that the Prevent learning review will provide the much-needed answers and, crucially, the learnings that the family of Sir David Amess deserve?

[Dan Jarvis]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this matter. Sir David Amess is a much-missed colleague, and his family continue to be in our thoughts. The Home Secretary met Lady Amess recently, and we are very grateful to the family for the important representations that they have made. Next week, as I have said, we will publish the Prevent learning review of the appalling attack on Sir David. We will never forget him.

Police Grant Report

Bayo Alaba Excerpts

Wednesday 5th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Bayo Alaba (Southend East and Rochford) (Lab)]

As I am sure Members know, Southend and Rochford is an area of immense cultural heritage, vibrant businesses and a picturesque coastline. Last summer, we faced high-profile incidents of antisocial behaviour and crime. I would like to thank the Minister for her support during that time. As a new MP, it was a very traumatic time for both me and the community. That is why I was shocked when, last week, the Conservative police and crime commissioner for Essex announced the sacking of all 99 PCSOs across Essex. I am pleased that our Labour Government have saved the Essex PCSOs from Tory cuts. In fact, this year the Labour Government are investing a record amount of funding in Essex policing.

I hope the Minister agrees that we need police officers back on the beat in local communities, equipped with tougher powers to crack down on the crimes blighting our high streets and to restore confidence among businesses, consumers and local communities that the city centre is a place that people can enjoy.