Burton and Uttoxeter’s Member of Parliament, Kate Griffiths, has today (Wednesday 19th January) asked Prime Minister Boris Johnson for Government support to curb knife crime following a spate of incidents along the Staffordshire and Derbyshire border.
In June 2021, a 17-year-old boy was stabbed to death in nearby Swadlincote with his killer recently jailed. Shortly before Christmas last year, a 19-year-old man was also stabbed to death in Stretton. Another man received multiple stab wounds in front of hundreds of people who had gathered for the Christmas lights switch-on in Burton town centre.
In the session of Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) Ms Griffiths said: “These tragic events leave behind devastated families and, understandably, very worried communities.”
The local MP praised the work of Staffordshire Police and asked the Prime Minister what more the Government could do to support a ‘multi-stakeholder approach’ to tackle crimes amongst young people and help schools, colleges and local authorities address the underlining issues of knife crime.
In response, the Prime Minister said:
“Like so many victims of violent crime, the answer is not just policing, although that is vitally important and that is why we are investing so massively in 20 thousand more police officers and supporting them with toughening the law.
“But it is also, as she rightly says, important to get all the institutions of the state to work together, schools; colleges; social services; and the health service, and the mental health service as well.
Following the session of PMQs, Kate Griffiths added:
“I am grateful for the Prime Minister’s response and the Government’s commitment to ending the scourge of knife crime.
“It is critical that community leaders like me, the Police and local councillors work together to ensure that knife crime and the causes of knife crime are tackled. I will continue to work with others to ensure this issue is a local priority and so that residents feel safe being out in the community.”
