Serious Violence: Battersea

Opened the debate

The Member for Battersea, Marsha de Cordova, highlighted the rise of serious violence in her constituency and across the UK since 2015. She cited examples such as a fatal stabbing in Battersea to illustrate the devastating impact on families and communities. De Cordova called out Conservative policies that have led to police cuts and austerity measures, resulting in an increase in violent crimes and youth services being significantly reduced by nearly £1 billion. She urged the Government to update their serious violence strategy and invest more in neighbourhood policing, prevention programmes like the Violence Reduction Unit (VRU), mental health support, and youth services.

Government Response

Minister Tom Pursglove acknowledged the serious nature of violent crime and committed to tackling it through both tough enforcement and intervention programmes. He highlighted that homicides fell by 10% in the last year, with a further reduction compared to pre-pandemic levels. The Government has deployed various strategies such as violence reduction units (VRUs), hotspot policing initiatives like Grip, and the recruitment of an additional 20,000 police officers across England and Wales since 2019. He announced plans for legislative changes including bans on large knives, increased penalties for selling knives to under-18s, and new offences related to possession of bladed weapons with intent to harm or fear of violence. Additionally, the Government is investing £200 million over ten years in the Youth Endowment Fund aimed at preventing children from being involved in violent crime.