Root causes of knife crime need to be address to stop children taking lives – MP
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A conversation on why children find it so easy to take a life is “desperately needed”, an MP has said, following the fatal stabbing of a 12-year-old boy earlier this week. Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty suggested it isn’t enough to ban zombie knives and that the root causes of knife crime amongst young people should be addressed.
The fatal stabbing of a child has become a familiar occurrence, with the number of teenagers killed as a result of knife crime doubling in the past decade, the Huntingdon MP told the Commons. A 14-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder, West Midlands Police said, after 12-year-old Leo Ross was found with a stab wound near Scribers Lane in Hall Green, Birmingham on Tuesday.
On Thursday, Commons Leader Lucy Powell said the Government is committed to halving knife crime over the next decade and further measures to tackle the issue will be brought forward later this year. During business questions, Mr Obese-Jecty said: “This week we saw the tragic murder of Leo Ross who was just 12 years old, two weeks ago 14-year-old Kelyan Bokassa. The fatal stabbing of a child has become an all too familiar occurrence.
“The number of teenagers murdered by knife has doubled in the past decade, teenagers are twice as likely to be fatally stabbed as any other demographic. “The Government have pledged to halve knife crime, legislating to ban zombie knives, but they account for only 3.6% of murders involving a knife. Kitchen knives account for over 52.6%, everybody has access to a draw-full of those in their own home.
