UK Knife Crime Hits Record High, Murder Surges in Khan’s London

Forensics officers work outside a tent near London Bridge in London, on November 30, 2019.
NIKLAS HALLE'N/AFP via Getty Images

Knife crime in England and Wales reached a historic high in the year leading up to the end of March, as murders climb again in Sadiq Khan’s London.

Crimes committed with knives in Britain jumped 6 per cent over the previous year, with some 46,265 knife crimes being recorded in the year to March 2020 — when the British government locked down the nation in response to the Chinese coronavirus pandemic.

The figures are in fact likely higher in reality, however, as Greater Manchester Police did not contribute their statistics to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) report.

The surge in bloodshed was driven in large part by crime in London, which saw a 7 per cent increase in knife-related crimes, with the number of murders in the British capital increasing by 23 per cent in the year to April. Homicides committed with a knife or blade have also risen by 28 per cent since 2018, with 86 people being stabbed to death in London last year.

The ONS report also revealed that last year there were 619 offences committed with corrosive substances — such as acid. This was the first year that the data collection agency recorded figures for such crimes.

London Assembly Member David Kurten said in response to the surge in crime: “There must be an end to politically correct policing — more stop & search, more arrests of burglars and violent gang members, less hassling people for having the wrong opinions.”

Former Brexit Party MEP Martin Daubney added: “All this while London’s dismal Mayor, Sadiq Khan, orders an urgent review into… ‘racist’ statues.”

The proportion of crimes actually being solved in England and Wales also fell to a record low, with just 7 per cent of criminal acts resulting in a court appearance for a suspect, down from 8 per cent last year and 16 per cent in 2014-15 when such records began to be compiled.

The Home Office report said that the fall represented some 33,460 fewer offences resulting in a criminal charge or court summons compared to the year prior. The number of sexual offences that resulted in charges fell from 5.2 per cent two years ago to just 3.2 per cent last year.

The number of rapes that ended in prosecution was just 1.4 per cent.

The national chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, John Apter, said: “It is a tragedy these crimes continue to spiral as my colleagues are stretched to their limits, but with fewer officers available to be out on patrol it comes as no surprise.”

“More than ever we need a visible presence and deterrent to violent crime. We need more officers available to deter and prevent these horrendous crimes and ease the burden on over-stretched colleagues,” Apter added.

The surge in knife crime comes as the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, announced last month that as a result of budget shortfalls due to the Chinese coronavirus and the ensuing lockdown, his office will look to cut some  £110 million from the budgets of the Metropolitan Police, the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC), the fire brigade, and other essential services.

Follow Kurt on Twitter at @KurtZindulka

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