Gordon Brown to declare war on knife crime

GORDON Brown will this week declare war on the deadly epidemic of knife crime on Britain’s streets.

Teens under 16 in seven crime hotspots will face 9pm curfews as part of the £100million plan – drawn up by the PM and Home Secretary Jacqui Smith to halt the spiralling number of teenagers stabbed to death.

The clampdown comes after the lethal scourge claimed six more lives in 24 hours.

The measures in the new Youth Crime Action Plan – officially launched on Tuesday – will see a determined effort to stop thugs carrying knives. Mr Brown will signal that young offenders will be dragged to casualty wards to see the horrific injuries suffered by stab victims.

The sweeping changes will include:

/ Imposing the 9pm curfew on teenagers in key troublespots and police taking troublemakers home to their parents.

/ Forcing pubs and clubs which are notorious flashpoints for violence to install “knife arches” to scan customers for knives and

other weapons. Venues which fail to join the clampdown could be shut down.

/ More undercover checks to make sure shops don’t sell knives to children.

/ Forcing offenders to go to workshops about the consequences of knife crime on victims and relatives in an effort to shock them into putting down their blades.

/ Letting victims and the public help choose how knife-wielding criminals are punished.

/Urging parents to call helplines if they fear their children are carrying knives.

In London alone, there have been 20 teenage murder victims so far this year – including 16 who were knifed.

The capital is among seven “knife crime hotspots” which will be the focus of relentless police efforts, said Home Secretary Ms Smith. The others are  listed in the panel above.

She said the new plan would build on the success of an anti-gang clampdown which had cut injuries from gunshot wounds by 50 per cent in crime hotspots.

She said: “I am absolutely shocked at the tragic and senseless loss of life we have seen recently.

“We must tackle this violence head on. That is why I am outlining further measures, coupled with early intervention and support for parents.”

Every school in knife hotspots will have a specific police officer to advise them on youth crime and there will be more youth workers to deter knife-carrying.

Children up to the age of 16 on the streets after 9pm will be taken to a safe place such as a community centre.

Police and social workers will contact their parents and talk to them about why they were out late.

Mrs Smith attacked Tory leader David Cameron for his “simplistic” vow to jail all knife offenders. She said: “The police, as well as the

judges and community leaders, don’t want every single young person found carrying a knife jailed.”

Mr Brown and Britain’s most senior policeman, Met Police chief Sir Ian Blair, put the finishing touches to the plan yesterday at the PM’s country home, Chequers.

The plan comes as the Home Offices prepares to publish separate knife crime statistics for the first time on Thursday.

The figures are expected to show that the true number of knifings is far higher than experts feared.

The number of fatal stabbings has rocketed by 28 per cent over the past decade, from 201 to 258.

Yet of 6,320 knife offenders found guilty in 2006, just 995 – 16 per cent – were jailed.