Lost lives

"I never got to say goodbye. I am living a nightmare. I can hardly function and I have changed as a person. When I wake up, on the occasions I've managed to sleep, it hits me like a tonne of bricks again and again."

That was the heart-rending statement from Charlie Mclean, read out at the trial of the two boys who murdered her son Khayri.

Khayri was just 15 when he was stabbed to death outside his school in HuddersfieldA town in West Yorkshire, England, with a population of more than 150,000. last September. His killers, who were given life sentences for the killing last week, were themselves just 15 and 17.

About 19% of people admitted to hospital after an assault with a sharp object are under the age of 18.¹ Some groups are affected more than others. Black people are five times as likely to end up in hospital after being stabbed than White or Asian people.

Experts disagree on what has caused this epidemic of knife violence. The Ben Kinsella Trust, an anti-knife crime charity, says the Covid-19 pandemic is partly responsible. They say it made young people more vulnerable to exploitation by gangs.

Others think we have to look deeper. Another charity, Fighting Knife Crime London, says it comes down to social deprivationWhen a person or group is unable to fully access all of society's resources due to poverty, discrimination or other disadvantages..

When young people feel they have been abandoned by their communities, they are more likely to fall in with gangs that can give them a sense of identity and purpose.

Some point the finger for this at austerityWhen the government cuts down on public spending.  policies. They say the last decade has seen a reduction of almost half a billion pounds in spending on services for young people.

As a result, 600 youth centres have closed since 2010. These centres are a key place for young people to meet people and get support. Young people who might have filled those places end up with less to do and nowhere to go.

Still others think the problem is that the authorities do not take young people seriously. Many teenage victims of knife crime say that the police have failed to follow up on their reports. The police, they say, have focused too much on taking knives off individuals, and not enough on gangs.

One thing most experts agree on: if Britain wants to stop the devastation of young lives it needs to give young people opportunities, and make sure they are listened to.

Yes: Most experts think the government can reduce knife violence by focusing on prevention, rather than punishment. If it gives young people hope for the future, the violence will stop.

No: Knife crime is a symptom of a breakdown in public services. If the UK wants to end the violence it has to spend more on young people. But right now it cannot find the money to spend on anything.

Or... Money is not necessarily a barrier to action: the government would likely save more than it spends by reducing knife crime. It is a question of finding the political will to do something, and this is harder.