PRESS RELEASE

January 18th, 2010

Knife action needed

Greenock and Inverclyde MSP Duncan McNeil is backing the No Knives, Better Lives campaign but believes more has to be done to tackle knife crime.

Following the Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill’s visit to Inverclyde for the next phase of the No Knives, Better Lives, Mr McNeil offered his support to the measures to steer young people away from violence.

But he called on the Justice Secretary to support those educational schemes with tough penalties for knife crime.

Mr McNeil repeated his calls for a mandatory minimum sentence to be introduced for people caught carrying knives.

He said: “I would applaud those involved in this campaign for their efforts and it is important that we make young people aware of the dangers of violence and knives.

“But where this approach fails, we must act by sending knife offenders to prison and this education has to be complemented by taking a tough line on those who don’t heed these warnings.

“This community has supported the calls for mandatory minimum sentence for knife crime and I hope that the Justice Secretary was listening when he visited this week.

“If he has listened, Mr MacAskill will re-think his misguided plans to abolish short sentences which would allow two-thirds of knife criminals to go free. His Criminal Justice Bill needs to be clear – carry a knife and go to jail .”

ENDS