Tackling knife crime in the capital was always going to be a difficult task. Blaming it entirely on the Mayor of London would be an unfair charge to make, and we should refrain from making such an important issue into a political device. Nevertheless, it is important to note that certain aspects of the Mayor’s approach to this matter warrant closer scrutiny. Pressing those in public service with authority over these issues is essential to ensure action is actually taken; and knife crime in the capital especially has gone on for far too long. This is an issue which is larger than politics.
It is unclear whether Sadiq Khan understands his job description, as it has seemed that he has taken the position of transport minister for London, with a large emphasis on TfL services since he first presumed office in 2016. There is no denying that one of the most crucial elements of ensuring London is fit to perform on the global stage is to ensure it has a working transport system. There is also no denying that if the Mayor put even a fraction of the effort he has put into the transport system into tackling knife crime, London may have made some progress on the issue.
As the Mayor continues to put his efforts into other areas, the largest issue facing the capital is being swept under the carpet for the next Mayor of London to deal with. The approach which he should be taking is a more proactive one, setting up roundtable discussions with local authorities and then acting on that constructive discussion. A barrier which has also been recently broken down is that between central government and City Hall, with the Mayor reluctant to work with the previous Tory government.
Now that Labour are in power, we can hope to see a lot more collaboration between the government and City Hall and finally put an end to an issue which has haunted Londoners for far too long. Whatever your political affiliations, everyone must recognise that knife crime under the Mayor has spiralled out of control. We must get behind the government in working in collaboration with City Hall to finally carry out effective action.
We see reports of knife crime in the capital seemingly every week. The truth is Londoners have become less and less horrified with headlines such as these as they have become all too common. This highlights an extreme failure of those at the top to tackle violence of all descriptions, not just knife crime.
The way to even attempt to tackle this issue relies on rooting out the fear in London’s youth that if they do not carry a knife they are somehow more susceptible to being attacked or more vulnerable. The truth is this not only increases the number of knives on our streets but actually makes those who carry them out of fear more susceptible to being attacked; the very reason they carry them in the first place. Police forces must work with London’s colleges and other academic institutions to get this message across to the youth. Academic institutions can become the beacon that drives down knife crime in the capital. Colleges and other academic institutions do an amazing job at setting the youth on the right track in life, and I personally owe a lot to them. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go and a lot of progress to make to promote social cohesion, set more people on the right career path, and, most importantly, deter them away from violence.
Time and again Sadiq Khan said that he raised issues with the Conservative government to tackle knife crime. He can no longer hide behind this excuse. Labour in power in both City Hall and Westminster mean we must see progress on the issue. Khan must stop blaming others for decisions which he has authority over and start taking responsibility. There is a major possibility that we continue to see this blame culture within the Labour Party, despite them being in a position to implement change. Be under no illusion, these are their choices; they can either do nothing and blame others for the lack of progress or use the position they find themselves in to implement real change.
There must be major collaboration between the government, local government, and academic institutions to tackle this issue. We must not let an issue as important as this go unattended to due to politics.
