Oral Answers to Questions

Rob Butler Excerpts

Monday 23rd March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Rob Butler (Aylesbury) (Con)]

4. What plans her Department has to tackle knife crime. [R]

[Stuart Anderson (Wolverhampton South West) (Con)]

10. What plans her Department has to reduce knife crime in Wolverhampton.

[The Minister for Crime and Policing (Kit Malthouse)]

Knife crime is a scourge on our society that leaves a trail of grief, anger and despair across entire communities, costing lives and leaving people afraid. That is why the Home Secretary has increased police funding by more than £1 billion this year, is giving the police more powers to stop and search known offenders, has started recruiting 20,000 more police officers, and is ensuring that those who carry a knife are locked up for longer. We will do everything in our power to end these shocking acts of violence and this senseless loss of life.

[Rob Butler]

Aylesbury young offenders institution in my constituency has a large number of young men aged between 18 and 21 who have been convicted of very serious offences, many of them involving knives, yet many young teenagers still believe—wrongly—that they need to carry a knife for their protection. What message does my hon. Friend have for them?

[Kit Malthouse]

My hon. Friend is quite right to raise this appalling issue which, notwithstanding the current crisis, has dogged this country. As somebody who, in my role at City Hall in London 10 years ago, had to fight a similar upsurge in knife crime, I know he is right that we need to send the right message to young people. It is statistically true that someone is much more likely to be stabbed or injured if they are carrying a knife than if they are not. That is a basic truth that we need to communicate to young people.