Worrying knife crime trend must be reversed

City MP Stewart Jackson has suggested that part of the issue of rising knife crime in the area could be linked to large numbers of people from eastern Europe moving into the area because - he suggests - culturally there is a greater propensity to carry knives among some members of those communities. His view is not shared by the city’s top cop - Peterborough Area Commander Superintendent Melanie Dales - who was categorical in her assertion that she did not believe this was the case. However, if the figure that Mr Jackson quotes - 37% of knife incidents in Cambridgeshire are linked to individuals who are not British - it is a factor that must be looked at. Education is the key alongside robust police action against anyone caught with a knife in suspicious circumstances. Supt Dale says the answer lies in better education for young people who feel the need to carry a knife for ‘protection’. She is correct but the fact that this is the case and that knife crime is rising significantly in the city is deeply concerning. The police’s own figures say that between September 1, 2015 and September 1 this year there were 41 knife-related incidents in Peterborough compared to 20 in the same period in the previous year... that’s a dramatic trend we cannot see continue in Peterborough. If that trend continues it is inevitable that the result will be serious injury and most likely deaths. Supt Dale is correct to target young people with education but Mr Jackson’s concerns also appear to be supported by some concerning statistics and that cannot be ignored. The knife amnesty has been a success but it should be just the start of the efforts to reverse what is a very alarming trend.

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