Actor Idris Elba passionately called upon the British government on Monday to enact a ban on machetes and serrated “zombie” knives in a bid to curb the rising menace of knife crime, particularly affecting young people.
The London-born star of acclaimed series like “The Wire” and “Luther” joined forces with activists from the “Don’t Stop Your Future” campaign outside Parliament. Elba, standing amidst symbolic representations of lives lost to knives, urged the government to take decisive action to address the alarming increase in knife-related incidents, especially among the youth.
In the United Kingdom, where stringent gun-control laws are in place, nearly four out of ten homicides involve a knife or a sharp instrument. The concern is magnified in cities across Britain, where knife crime poses a significant threat. In 2023, London alone witnessed the tragic death of 21 teenagers, with 18 of them succumbing to fatal stabbings.
Elba, speaking out against the brutal and heartless nature of these crimes, emphasized the need for immediate action. He expressed his inability to remain silent as more young lives are lost, particularly as schools reopen, fearing that too many families would grieve the loss of a loved one.
Despite the government’s announcement of a ban on threatening-looking machetes and knives in August 2023, parliamentary approval is still pending. Elba also took a stance against technology companies, urging them to be held accountable for promoting knife imagery on mobile phones. He argued that the inundation of advertisements for knives when searching online was a concerning trend that needed to be addressed.
“I can pick up a phone right now, type in knives, and I’ll get inundated with adverts for them,” Elba remarked, advocating for measures to deter tech companies from promoting such content.
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Responding to Elba’s plea, Max Blain, spokesman for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, acknowledged the devastating impact of knife crime on lives. He noted a decline in both knife crime and hospital admissions for stabbings compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019-2020 but affirmed the government’s commitment to doing more. Blain welcomed Elba and others for continuing to shine a light on this critical issue, recognizing the importance of collective efforts in addressing the persistent challenge of knife crime in the United Kingdom.
