Committee publication · Correspondence · 28 April 2026
Letter from the Minister of State for Policing and Crime relating to Protecting lives, building hope - A plan to half knife crime 07.04.2026
From: Home Affairs Committee
Summary
The Minister of State for Policing and Crime writes to inform parliamentary committees that the Government has published 'Protecting Lives, Building Hope: A Plan to Halve Knife Crime'. The plan targets a 50% reduction in knife crime within a decade, building on progress including an 8% drop in knife crime and 27% fall in knife homicides over 15 months. It deploys a four-part approach: supporting young people, stopping those at risk, policing streets and cracking down on knife availability, and ending cycles of offending through youth justice reform.
Key findings
- Knife crime down 8% in first 15 months of Government, with knife homicides falling 27%; all homicides at lowest levels for nearly 50 years
- Over 63,000 knives removed from streets; Knife-enabled Robbery Group areas achieved 15% reductions after previous 14% increases
- Four-part plan: SUPPORT (youth services, Young Future Hubs, mental health teams in schools), STOP (vulnerability identification, Violence Reduction Units, Young Futures Panels), POLICE (neighbourhood policing, investigative tools, tightened knife regulations), END (youth justice diversion, adult offender rehabilitation, targeting habitual knife carriers)
- Target baseline: reduce police-recorded knife crimes from 54,659 (year ending June 2024) to 27,330 by year ending June 2034
- Delivery will be driven by new Halving Knife Crime Delivery Board chaired by the Minister; Coalition to Tackle Knife Crime established bringing together campaign groups, bereaved families, community leaders and survivors
Tone
SupportiveTopics
Key actors
Sarah Jones MP, Home Affairs Select Committee, Justice Select Committee, Knife-enabled Robbery (KER) Group, Coalition to Tackle Knife Crime, Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs), Violence Reduction Units
Notable line
“Knife crime is down by 8% after just 15 months and knife homicides have fallen by 27%, which has contributed to all homicides being at their lowest levels for nearly 50 years.”
Key Quotes
“To sit with a grieving family after a fatal stabbing – as I and too many other MPs have – is to be confronted by the terrible reality of knife crime.”
“The Government entered office with a clear and vital mission to halve knife crime in a decade, saving lives and protecting families and communities from harm.”
“Knife crime is too often discussed only after tragedy, but if we start there, we start too late.”
“… halving knife crime requires sustained action across public services, communities and wider society.”
“… to meet our target, the number of police recorded knife crimes would need to fall from 54,659 (year ending June 2024) to 27,330 by year ending June”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗