A major crackdown on knife crime kicks off across England and Wales today.
Operation Sceptre is a week-long targeted approach across all 44 forces in England and Wales that is aimed at tackling knife crime and raising awareness of its impact.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Warrington Guardian reports that the scheme will see police using surrender bins, stop-and-search powers and weapon sweeps to target “habitual blade-carriers”.
According to the National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC), officers will “also engage with young people through schools and clubs”, and “many forces will ensure their local shops are enforcing the law by restricting the sale of knives to anyone under the age of 18”.
Undercover police volunteers will attempt to buy blades to check whether retailers are selling them illegally to minors, reports the Daily Mail. Retailers who break the rules face up to six months’ imprisonment, a fine of £5,000, or both.
The NPCC’s lead for knife crime, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Duncan Ball, said: “Police cannot tackle violence alone and this week highlights our work with schools, charities, the health service and communities to eradicate knife crime and keep people safe.”
Similar drives have been held under the name Operation Sceptre in recent years. An enforcement week in February 2018 led to 3,660 knives being surrendered across 28 police force areas, while 615 arrests were made by 27 forces, including 282 for knife-related offences.
Knife crime in the UK has been increasing steadily since 2011 and reached a peak in the year leading up to September 2018, according to the last report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The number of offences involving knives or sharp instruments increased by 8% to 39,818, up from 36,776 offences recorded the previous year, adds Sky News.
-
How clean-air efforts may have exacerbated global warmingUnder the Radar Air pollution artificially cooled the Earth, ‘masking’ extent of temperature increase
-
September 14 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include RFK Jr on the hook, the destruction of discourse, and more
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-warTalking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
Dash: the UK's 'flawed' domestic violence toolThe Explainer Risk-assessment checklist relied on by police and social services deemed unfit for frontline use
-
The ethics behind facial recognition vans and policingThe Explainer The government is rolling out more live facial recognition technology across England
-
The Met police's stop and search overhaulThe Explainer More than 8,500 Londoners have helped put together a new charter for the controversial practice
-
Axel Rudakubana: how much did the authorities know about Southport killer?Today's Big Question Nigel Farage accuses PM of a cover-up as release of new details raises 'very serious questions for the state about how it failed to intervene before tragedy struck'
-
NCHIs: the controversy over non-crime hate incidentsThe Explainer Is the policing of non-crime hate incidents an Orwellian outrage or an essential tool of modern law enforcement?
-
Southport knife attack: third child dies of injuriesSpeed Read Taylor Swift shares her condolences after young fans targeted at pop-themed dance class
-
Hainault sword attack: police hunt for motiveSpeed Read Mental health is key line of inquiry, as detectives prepare to interview suspect
-
The new powers to stop stalking in the UKThe Explainer Updated guidance could help protect more victims, but public is losing trust in police and battered criminal justice system
