Tough line on knives

A NEW law will make it illegal for anyone under 18 to buy a knife. It will be tougher than the UK’s as the Home Department does not want to include an exemption covering kitchen knives.

‘The majority of knife-related offences committed by minors in the UK involve kitchen knives and an exemption would undermine the strong message that this legislation is intended to convey,’ said minister Geoff Mahy.

There is no law at all at the moment and, theoretically, anyone can go into a shop and buy a knife without showing ID. Home will ask the States at the end of the month to accept its recommendations, which would also tackle the marketing of knives and other pointed weapons and give police more powers to stop and search someone they suspect to be carrying a knife.

It is felt the marketing of some items suggests they are suitable for combat and stimulate or encourage violent behaviour. ‘The department fully appreciates that legislation cannot, by itself, prevent somebody from using a knife to injure another person,’ said Deputy Mahy. ‘However, it contends that the proposals set out in the report are a proportionate response to concerns about an apparent trend among some young people to carry knives or other bladed weapons.’ (from thisisguernsey)

About time too....

ATTEMPTS to strengthen control on knives through banning their sale to under-18s have been branded as a nanny state knee-jerk reaction.
John Gollop will move an amendment to the Home Department’s proposed legislation so that the ban would affect only under-16s. He said he appreciated the spirit behind the report.
‘I agree that the law needs to be more strictly tackled and enforced, but I see this legislation as being not a priority, unnecessary in some of its detail and self-defeating because it criminalises legitimate activity by hard-working teenagers,’ said Deputy Gollop.
‘It doesn’t do anything to tackle teenagers who already do illegal things, or older people who may be unstable who buy knives.’

I like John, but this time I think he is doing the wrong thing...