Scotland: In a multi-point program aimed at reducing knife crime, First Minister Jack McConnell has proposed banning the sale of swords; introducing “a licensing scheme for retailers selling knives”; doubling, to four years, the maximum jail term for possessing an offensive weapon; giving police new powers of search and arrest; and raising the age limit for buying a knife to 18, from the current 16. (“Crackdown targets knife culture”, BBC, Nov. 22). And in Yeovil, Somerset, police “have been accused of heavy handedness after arresting two young boys who were playing with toy guns.” The boys, 11 and 13, were wearing Santa Claus and Frankenstein’s-monster costumes and one of them sang the James Bond theme song as they pretended to shoot each other with the toys while rolling around on the floor at a youth club. “One of the boys was held in a cell for five hours.” (Simon de Bruxelles, “Playing with toy gun puts boy, ll, in a cell”, The Times (UK), Dec. 3).
Disarming the U.K.
Scotland: In a multi-point program aimed at reducing knife crime, First Minister Jack McConnell has proposed banning the sale of swords; introducing “a licensing scheme for retailers selling knives”; doubling, to four years, the maximum jail term for possessing an offensive weapon; giving police new powers of search and arrest; and raising the age limit […]
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