Red tape cut in knife crime drive /BBC,18 September 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7622207.stm
"Police in knife crime hot-spots are to get powers that ministers say will reduce red tape when stopping people for informal questioning on the street. Officers in 10 areas, including London, Manchester and Merseyside, will no longer have to fill out lengthy forms."

Ministers want doctors to tell police if they treat patients with wounds from knife attack/ The Guardian, Tuesday August 19 2008

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/aug/19/knifecrime.nhs?gusrc=rss&feed=society

"Doctors will be told to inform the police whenever somebody arrives in hospital with a wound inflicted in a knife attack, under draft guidance drawn up by the General Medical Council and the Department of Health. But accident and emergency doctors will not have to breach confidentiality by disclosing identifying details such as the patient's name and address when they first make contact."

Weapons seized in police campaign / BBC, Aug 7 2008

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7545298.stm

"More than 2,750 weapons have been handed in or seized since Strathclyde Police launched a campaign to reduce violence at the start of the year. Samurai swords, machetes, axes, knives and daggers were among the haul. The majority of weapons taken off the streets were household knives and scissors which had been modified.
The force said higher impact policing and early morning raids had resulted in the arrest of more than 300 violent offenders during the campaign."

One in five young men have faced knife threats, survey finds Guardian, July 21 2008

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/jul/21/youngpeople.knifecrime?gusrc=rss&feed=uknews

"One in five young men have been threatened with a knife and almost half know someone it has happened to, a survey reveals today. The poll of 1,000 young people gives a bleak impression of increasing street violence and fear, which has left 78% of those questioned afraid to walk the streets."

Knife crime operation draws blank / BBC, 5 August 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/beds/bucks/herts/7542618.stm

"More than 400 young people were searched in an operation to tackle knife crime - but not one of them was carrying a weapon. The crackdown in Waltham Cross, Herts, on 25 and 26 July and 1 and 2 August was in response to recent stabbings."

Concern at knife crime sentences / BBC.co.uk, 30 July 2008

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/7533102.stm

The jail terms for knife offences ranged between two and four months
Fewer than one in five people charged with knife offences are sent to prison, Metropolitan (Met) Police figures show. Staff monitored 103 individuals charged with such offences in one week in June during an anti-knife crime operation.

Police to be drafted into schools to cut violence, minister says /The Guardian, July 30 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/jul/30/pupilbehaviour.schools?gusrc=rss&feed=society
"The schools minister, Andrew Adonis, called on police forces yesterday to permanently draft officers into schools to cut violent crime. He said constables could frisk pupils for weapons, drink and drugs and generally keep children safe.At least 450 secondary and primary schools in England already have a police officer permanently on site."

Violent crime down but credit fraud is soaring / Independent, Friday, 18 July 2008

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/violent-crime-down-but-credit-fraud-is-soaring-870844.html

"The number of muggings and burglaries could soon start to rise again because of the economic downturn, the Home Office warned yesterday as it trumpeted sharp falls in overall crime rates. It also said credit card fraud is increasing rapidly as criminal gangs exploit the boom in internet shopping to produce cloned cards.The first official police figures on knife crime disclosed that more than 22,000 attacks with blades were carried out last year, although separate statistics yesterday suggested the actual figure could be almost 130,000."

Young people's knife crime fears / BBC.co.uk, 28 July 2008
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7523152.stm

"84% of those polled said it has become easier to buy knives
More than half (55%) of young people fear becoming victims of knife crime in the summer months, a survey has shown. The poll, commissioned by BBC London, surveyed 501people aged 13 to 18 in the London boroughs of Brent, Croydon, Hackney, Lambeth, and Southwark."

One in five young men have faced knife threats, survey finds /Society Guardian, July 21 2008

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/jul/21/youngpeople.knifecrime?gusrc=rss&feed=society
"One in five young men have been threatened with a knife and almost half know someone it has happened to, a survey reveals today.

The poll of 1,000 young people gives a bleak impression of increasing street violence and fear, which has left 78% of those questioned afraid to walk the streets."

Beckton puts youth crime high on agenda / 24dash.com, 29 July 2008
http://digbig.com/4xgan
"A memorial service for four of Becktons young people was a powerful opening for the Beckton Community Forum safety event. The service, hosted by Kingsford Community School, launched the event called Making You and Your Community Safer Action Against Knife Crime."

Transport police target knife crime during summer holidays / 24dash.com, 25 July 2008
http://digbig.com/4xftp
"More than 60 British Transport Police officers have spent the past week involved in a summer holiday crackdown targeting anti-social behaviour, drug possession and knife-carrying. BTP Inspector Graham Urry said rail passengers at key transport hubs in London would have noticed an increased presence of officers, including the use of the mobile metal detecting arch – known as Operation Shield – along with the deployment of drug detecting dogs."

Why tough talk on knife crime is not the answer / New Statesman, 17 July 2008
http://www.newstatesman.com/uk-politics/2008/07/knife-crime-prison-government
"The Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, deserves praise for making the case for restorative justice, yet it was badly done. There is solid evidence that forcing people to confront the consequences of their crimes is more effective in cutting reoffending than purely punitive measures. A study this month from Cambridge University shows that, under restorative justice, reconviction rates fall by as much as 27 per cent. For those who believe that anything but prison is a soft option, however, the alternatives must be convincing. It was incompetent of the Home Office to wait so long before making it clear that those using knives would not be marched to hospital to visit the victims of their violence. Smith's clarification eventually came, but the damage was done."

Street Weapons Commission: Guns, Knives and Street Violence / Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, June 2008
PDF - http://www.channel4.com/news/microsites/S/street_weapons_commission/pdfs/CCJS%20Street%20Weapons%20Report%20for%20Channel%204.pdf
Professor Peter Squires and Arianna Silvestri
with
Dr Roger Grimshaw and Enver Solomon

The Street Weapons Commission Report / Channel 4, 2008
PDF - http://www.channel4.com/news/microsites/S/street_weapons_commission/pdfs/C4_SWC_final_report.pdf Cherie Booth QC, Liam Black, Lord Dear et al

Going ballistic: dealing with guns, gangs and knives / Policy Exchange, 2008
PDF - http://www.policyexchange.org.uk/images/libimages/407.pdf
Dr Bob Golding and Jonathan McClory
Edited by Gavin Lockhart

How can our politicians understand blade culture? / Guardian, 14 July 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jul/14/knifecrime.youngpeople?gusrc=rss&feed=society
Rowenna Davis
"New proposals to tackle knife crime demonstrate just how little ministers know about the context our kids are operating in. Young people don't get involved with crime because they don't know the consequences; in many cases, it's precisely because they do know the consequences that they carry a blade."

'Black role models wanted' to help in fight against knife crime / 24dash.com, 15 July 2008
http://www.24dash.com/news/Communities/2008-07-15-Black-role-models-wanted-to-help-in-fight-against-knife-crime
Jon Land
"A national campaign to find role models for black youths was launched today as the Government struggles to get to grips with knife crime. Communities Secretary Hazel Blears said the drive was "crucial" to helping disadvantaged young people fulfil their potential and head off social problems."

U-turn blunts PM's strategy to cut knife crime on streets / Independent, 15 July 2008
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/uturn-blunts-pms-strategy-to-cut-knife-crime-on-streets-867614.html
Andrew Grice and Nigel Morris
"The Government's attempt to reassure the public over knife crime backfired when it was forced to retreat over a controversial plan for offenders to meet victims in hospitals. Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, who floated the idea on Sunday, was accused of making a hasty U-turn yesterday. She said she was talking about criminals who had used knives meeting doctors and other health staff – not patients who were victims of knife attacks."

We demand curfews to curb violence, say public / Times, 14 July 2008
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article4322650.ece
Jonathan Oliver and David Leppard
"A nationwide youth curfew to help combat knife crime was backed by the public and senior politicians last night. In the strongest sign yet of the growing fear of violence on Britain’s streets, a Sunday Times poll reveals today that nine out of 10 parents would back legal restrictions on their children going out after dark."