Tragic statistics

It was 20 minutes to midnight on New Year's Eve when Harry Pitman was pronounced dead. The 16-year-old had made his way with a group of friends to Primrose Hill in North London to watch the fireworks. But an argument with another group ended with Harry being stabbed to death with a hunting knife. Around him, thousands of people continued to celebrate, obliviousCompletely unaware or uninterested in what is happening around you. to his fate.

Last week another 16-year-old appeared in court. He wept as he was charged with Harry's murder and possessing an offensive weapon.

Harry was the 22nd teenager to be murdered in London last year; 18 of them were stabbed.

Across England and Wales, the police recorded 50,833 crimes involving knives in the 12 months up to the middle of last year.¹ They included 230 murders.²

Last week, standing in London's Parliament Square among 200 bundles of clothes belonging to murder victims, the actor Idris ElbaAn English actor, rapper and singer, born in London in 1972. launched a campaign called Don't Stop Your Future.

Elba is demanding three things: tougher measures against people who supply large knives; an increase in the number of youth workers; and a coalition involving politicians of all parties to end knife crime.

"I can't stay silent as more young lives are lost to these brutal and heartless crimes," he said. "Young people are our future. Their potential deserves to be met, not taken away by violence."

Zombie knivesBladed weapons inspired by zombie films. were banned in England and Wales in 2016, but have been used in dozens of murders since. Elba wants the UK government to crack down on them as hard as it did on XL bully dogs:

"We need to apply the same measures to zombie knives, machetes and swords, and examine the whole chain - from those who are profiting to the tech companies who are advertising."

Elba thinks there should be more focus on the social problems that lead to knife crime. London has 700 fewer youth workers than it did 10 years ago,³ a situation he wants to see reversed. 

To reinforce his points, he has made a rap video called Knives Down, in which he beratesCriticises angrily. MPsMembers of Parliament. MPs are elected to represent people in 650 different geographical areas.  sitting in parliamentAn assembly of representatives, usually of an entire nation, that makes laws. .

Writing in The Guardian, Gary Yonge argues that too many people think of knife crime just as a problem affecting Black teenage gang members in London. In fact three quarters of incidents take place outside the capital, and the great majority involve people who are not Black and do not belong to gangs.

Can anything be done?

Yes: A public-health approach clearly works. In 2005 the WHO branded Scotland the most violent country in the developed world. By tackling the social problems behind knife crime, murders have been reduced by 35%.

No: For far too many people, carrying a knife has become a way of life and a moment's anger can lead to murder. Others then feel they need knives for protection, so we are faced with a vicious circle.

Or... Police intervention can help, but depends very much on the co-operation of the community. The situation in Scotland is better because Scottish people trust the police much more than many ethnic minority Londoners do.