In 1997, England banned the private possession of handguns in the country following the 1996 Dunblane school shooting.
The gun grabbers argued it would save lives and lower crime.
The rest of us knew this would lead to other types of weapons being used in violent crimes. And now time has proven us correct.
As of March 2024, there were 50,500 'knife-related offenses' in England; London has the highest rate of serious knife crimes. Knives are the most common method of killing in the U.K., with 41% of England's 549 homicides being with a knife or sharp object and 82% of teenage homicides are with a knife.
While the rate of knife crime dipped with COVID lockdowns, it's on the rise again. Even gun crimes didn't go away; there were almost 1,110 firearm offenses in 2022/2023.
So much for saving lives and lowering crime, huh?
The problem is not, of course, the weapon used in the commission of a crime. Common sense should tell anyone that. Absent a gun, criminals determined to maim and murder will find another weapon -- any weapon -- to carry out their acts.
Several young girls were stabbed (three of them fatally) at a Taylor Swift dance class last year, sparking riots in the country. Only certain protesters were arrested and jailed because that's what England does these days.
Rather than addressing the root causes of crime, including England's often soft-on-crime policies and two-tier justice system, they're repeating what they did in 1997: blaming weapons again.
This time, knives.
Watch British actor Idris Elba argue kitchen knives don't need to be sharp.
"You can still cut your food without the point on the knife."
— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) January 29, 2025
Actor Idris Elba tells @Emmabarnett the ends of kitchen knives could be rounded to tackle a ‘crisis in knife crime’, ahead of a new BBC documentary.
#R4Today
Three days ago, the government announced tougher age restrictions on knives and now requires identification to purchase a knife online and again at delivery.
People buying knives online will have to submit photo ID at the point of sale and again on delivery as part of stricter age verification checks to be introduced by the Government in the wake of the Southport attack.
Under the new two-step system, which will be mandated for all retailers selling knives online, buyers may need to submit an official identity document such as a passport or driving licence, as well as proof of address such as a utility bill, before showing ID again when the package is delivered.
People may also need to submit a current photo or video of themselves to an online retailer alongside their ID, the Home Office said.
This is a great way to amass a database of people with knives so criminals know who to burglarize and give the government a handy list of who to visit when they eventually confiscate all sharp knives.
Because we all know that's coming. But for now, dull knives are in the U.K.'s future.
What happens after that? For starters, authorities will learn you can still stab someone with a rounded knife. This writer managed to cut her finger on a butter knife while washing dishes (don't ask, she's just that talented). Will crumpets and jam be verboten because butter knives are one day outlawed? Will Brits -- not known for their cooking to begin with -- be relegated to eating soup, mashed potatoes, and pudding because spoons are soon the only 'safe' utensil allowed under the law?
We can laugh, but that seems to be the path down which the U.K. is headed.
The criminals who, by definition, don't follow laws will figure out how to sharpen those dull knives or steal knives from others (because we're sure chefs and groups favored by politicians will be exempted from any such dull-knife ban).
Or they'll move onto other weapons - axes, screwdrivers, shovels, cricket bats, cars, fists.
What will the British government do then? Ban tools? Outlaw cricket? Mandate everyone wear gloves so they can't punch another person?
Where does it stop?
70 years ago, British citizens stood up to the Nazis and were undaunted in the face of genocidal warmongers dropping bombs on London. 'Keep Calm and Carry On' was a slogan of national pride.
Fast forward to 2024, and not only are guns outlawed, but memes can land you in prison (gang raping children, on the other hand, does not).
Can England come back from the brink? Can this once-great, expansive empire be saved? Or will they further descend into this namby-pamby nonsense that punishes innocent citizens, restricts their freedoms, and solves nothing because the government lacks the spine to address criminality and the people responsible for it?
Their future stands, quite literally, on the edge of a knife.
