The Home Office has announced the introduction of stricter rules for online retailers selling knives, along with tougher penalties for those failing to enforce them.
Following tragedies where the unlicensed sale of these weapons online has led to young people being killed, retailers will be required to report any bulk or suspicious looking purchases of knives on their platforms to police to prevent illegal resales happening on social media accounts.
The government will increase the sentence for selling weapons to under 18s from six months to two years prison time, which could apply to an individual who has processed the sale, or a ceo of the company.
This increased penalty will also apply to the sale of supply of prohibited offensive weapons, such as the recently banned zombie-style knives, following police evidence outlined by Commander Stephen Clayman, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for knife crime, where a discrepancy in current legislation was identified whereby there is more leniency for illegally selling weapons than possessing one.
In recognition of the array of knives that are involved in attached, a new offence of possessing an offensive weapon with intent for violence will be introduced in the Crime and Policing Bill, which will come with a prison sentence of up to four years in prison.
The government will also explore through a consultation later this year, whether a registration scheme should be put in place for all online retailers selling knives, so that only responsible sellers are able to sell knives. This follows the recent announcement that ID checks on the sales and delivery of knives will be strengthened.
Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, commented: “It is horrifying how easy it is for young people to get hold of knives online even though children’s lives are being lost and families and communities are being devastated as a result.
“Not enough has been done to tackle the online market over recent years which is why we made it an urgent priority in our manifesto and the measures today will be underpinned by investment for a new dedicated police unit to go after those who are breaking the law and putting children and teenagers’ lives at risk.”
Last autumn, Yvette Cooper commissioned Commander Clayman to conduct an review into the sale of knives online, which was published this week. It exposed ‘lethal loopholes’ in the sale of knives online and highlighted the lack of minimum standards for age verification and delivery checks.
National police chiefs’ council lead for knife crime, commander Stephen Clayman, said: “A key focus in our fight to tackle knife crime and improve the safety of our communities is limiting the accessibility of knives wherever possible, restricting their availability and the routes to purchase. All to often in policing, we are dealing with the horrific consequences of knife crime and seeing how it devastates individuals and families.
“The evidence in the end-to-end review clearly demonstrates just how easy it is for anyone to purchase a knife online, often avoiding any age verification at all, or where it is in place, exploiting vulnerabilities, especially with delivery.”
The government has a mission to halve knife crime over the next decade and tackling the online space is a core part of its plan. It has already announced it will introduce significant fines for tech executives who fail to remove illegal knife crime content from their platforms, as well as a mandatory two-step verification system for all retailers selling knives online. The government has also banned zombie-style knives and machetes and accelerated a ban on ninja swords.
Graham Wynn, assistant director of regulatory affairs at the British Retail Consortium, commented: “Retailers take their responsibilities seriously and are fully committed to playing their part in making sure knives don’t make their way into the wrong hands. We look forward to considering the full details of the new proposal and welcome the commitment from the Home Office to meet retailers on this vital issue to ensure the safe sale of knives.”
