Hundreds of knife carriers arrested
Police make 328 arrests on possession over six years
Police have confiscated hundreds of knives in West Lothian during the last six years.
A Freedom of Information request has found that officers arrested 328 people in relation to carrying knives since 2011.
So far this year, 40 people have been caught in possession of knives on the streets of West Lothian - almost double the number for the whole of last year.
Chief Inspector Stevie Dolan, Police Scotland’s area commander for West Lothian admitted officers were continuing to tackle knife crime.
He said: “Tackling crimes of violence, including knife crime remains a priority for police in West Lothian and we recognise the devastating impact such offences can have on victims, their families and the wider public.
“As a community we need to keep working hard to deter the carrying and use of knives. Officers within West Lothian continue to work with partners to educate about the harm that knives can cause.”
The chief inspector added: “Along with our colleagues in West Lothian Council we have been promoting the ‘No Knives, Better Lives’ campaign and hope that this has a positive impact longer term.
“Officers also continue to use stop and search powers proportionately and regularly visit those who we know are involved in violent crime to encourage them to change their behaviour.”
The Scottish Government praised the work of Police Scotland and admitted support would continue to be given to the ‘No Knives, Better Lives’ campaign.
A spokeswoman said: “Our approach of education backed by tough enforcement is working. Crimes of handling offensive weapons continue to drop dramatically in Scotland and are now at their lowest level in 31 years.
“Since the No Knives, Better Lives programme launched seven years ago, knife crime in Scotland has fallen dramatically.
“This is a welcome sign of the great work that initiatives like No Knives, Better Lives is doing to change the culture around violence in Scotland, but it does not mean that we can be complacent.
“One life lost is still one too many and we are committed to supporting No Knives Better Lives to make sure their work is continued and that knife crime is eradicated from Scottish society.”
In 2011, officers made 72 knifepossession arrests with 81 the following year, 69 in 2013, 39 in 2014 and 27 in 2015.
In Police Scotland’s annual statistics between April 2015 and April this year, 82 reports of people carrying all kinds of “offensive weapons” were made.
Of that number, including being in possession of all kinds of bladed instruments and other weapons, 76 arrests were made.