Senior police officer suggests teaching 5 year olds about knife crime

The head of the Metropolitan Police knife crime unit, DCS Sean Yates, has suggested that children as young as 5 should be taught about the dangers of knife crime to tackle an epidemic of stabbings in the capital.

Official figures show that 2017 was the worst year for over a decade with 45 people aged 25 or under being killed in London alone; a 114% increase on the previous year.

In Brighton the problem is much less pronounced but, as previous articles demonstrate, the city still has an issue with knife crime.

The Metropolitan Police Service wants the crime to be treated as a public health issue admitting that it will not be solved by relying on law enforcement alone. The situation is further hampered by the courts not following guidelines on the 'two strikes' law introduced in 2015 which should deliver an automatic custodial sentence to those caught carrying a knife more than once.