Knife crime in London leapt by more than a fifth in the last year with nearly 40 blade offences a day, official figures revealed on Wednesday, as politicians clashed over zombie knives and claims of dithering and inaction in tackling the problem.
Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that there were 14,000 knife crimes recorded by police in London during the 12 months to the end of September last year.
The total – which included 74 blade killings, 8,343 knifepoint robberies and 214 offences of rape or sexual assault carried out with a knife – was 2,531 offences higher than the equivalent figure of 11,469 for the previous 12 months.
That amounts to an increase of 22 per cent and an average of more than 38 such offences per day in London over the past year.
The new statistics also show that new London total is the second highest annual tally for knife crime in the capital over the past decade and 54 per cent higher than the annual figure of 9,086 recorded in March 2016, shortly before Mayor Sadiq Khan took over at City Hall.
The bleak news about knife crime in the capital came as Home Secretary James Cleverly claimed that legislation being introduced in Parliament today that legislation to strengthen a previously announced ban on zombie knifes and machetes would help to make the capital safer.
He said other reforms would including longer prison sentences, new powers to seize blades in suspect’s homes, and a “surrender and compensation” scheme to take weapons off the streets as well as investment in violence reduction programmes.
But Labour accused the government of taking too long to ban zombie knifes – which are currently only outlawed if they carry words or images indicating that they will be used for violence - and leaving loopholes in the new crackdown.
It said the crackdown should go further to cover weapons such as Ninja swords and also announced plans to ensure that every young person caught with a knife faces an “action plan” of measures ranging from curfews and tags to behavioural contracts and educational help.
The clashes follow a call from Dr Sinead O’Malley, the mother of 19-year-old Nottingham stab victim Grace O’Malley-Kumar, for automatic prison sentence to be imposed on anyone caught carrying a knife in response to the fatal attack which claimed her daughter’s life as well as that of her friend Barnaby Webber and school caretaker Ian Coates in June last year.
Neither policing minister Chris Philp nor Labour gave any indication of supporting that change, which would add to the existing mandatory six month prison term for adults convicted a second time for blade possession.
But Mr Philp insisted that the government’s new measures, combined with more “hot spot” policing and increased stop and search would build on what he insisted was its existing progress in tackling knife crime.
“It’s not true to say nothing is being done. We have taken 120,000 knives off the streets in the last four years.. but there is obviously more to do,” he said.
He admitted that a “loophole” had been left in the original 2016 ban on zombie knives which had allowed manufacturers to keep selling the weapons by simply removing violent images and words, but hit back at Labour’s criticism.
“There is nothing in their plans new at all and when you have got Labour mayors like Sadiq Khan in London, knife crime has gone up. He has reduced the use of stop and search, which is effective at taking knives off the streets, so ..they are actually going backwards,” Mr Philp said.
Home Secretary James Cleverly added: There have been too many families in London who have lost loved ones to the senseless violence we see our streets.
“It must stop, and with this ban on zombie-style machetes we are taking action to prevent any more tragedies.”
Labour’s shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said her party would be reviewing sentencing and supported “serious sanctions for serious offences” and accused ministers to tackle the supply of weapons and the causes of youth blade offending.
“There has to be much stronger action in terms of these dangerous knife sales,” she said. “This ban [on zombie knives] has been announced by six different Home Secretaries 16 times but it’s still not in place and it still doesn’t cover things like Ninja swords.”
The actor Idris Elba, who is working with parents of knife crime victims in a campaign to prevent further deaths, told BBC Breakfast that although he also wanted a ban on swords, today’s government action on zombie knives should be used as “a positive moment to have some critical thinking” about finding long term solutions.
“This is only a step in the right direction because there is such a long road to go. This feels a lot more robust, hopefully there aren’t any loopholes. Swords are not covered in here and I think that is a loophole.”
