Today's top Home Office story is a BBC report on the number of knife crime fatalities this year.
Knife deaths in 2019
BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning carried news that the number of fatal stabbings in the UK this year has reached 100.
The victims ranged in age from 14 to 80 and were comprised of 83 male victims, the report added.
BBC Home Affairs Correspondent Danny Shaw said it was “encouraging” to see that of the 100, there had been arrests in 95 of the cases and charges in 86 of them.
The report went on to cite the increased use of stop and search and noted the £100 million surge police funding to tackle knife crime. The Offensive Weapons Act’s Royal Assent yesterday, and the pilot of Knife Crime Prevention Orders, were also referenced.
A Home Office spokesperson said:
We are doing everything in our power to tackle the scourge of serious violence and our new Offensive Weapons Act is an important part of this.
The Act will see the introduction of Knife Crime Prevention Orders – a power the police called for.
We understand that more needs to be done, which is why we are investing over £220m in projects to steer young people away from crime.