Sarah Coombes

It has been a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir John. I appreciate the very moving contributions from everyone in the room. The right hon. Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton), talked about the James Brindley Foundation and the “Knife Angel”, which we also had in Sandwell. My hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Edgbaston (Preet Kaur Gill) said that this is a public health crisis, which it absolutely is. The hon. Member for Stratford-on-Avon (Manuela Perteghella) talked about Cody’s law, which she has been campaigning for. My hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen (Alex Ballinger) talked very movingly about the terrible case of Ryan, who was also killed in a nightclub. The hon. Member for Birmingham Perry Barr (Ayoub Khan) talked about the importance of youth clubs and his experience growing up in Aston. My hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton West (Warinder Juss) talked about the west midlands being the knife crime capital of England; we need to change that. My hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton North East (Mrs Brackenridge) talked about her experience in school and the impact it can have when there are horrendous incidents nearby, such as those involving Ronan and Shawn. The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) talked powerfully about the impact on women and girls of knives being used in sexual violence and the case of Natalie, which is extremely tragic. My hon. Friend the Member for Worcester (Tom Collins) talked about the importance to young people in his area of tackling violence. I appreciate everything that the Lib Dem spokesman, the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Luke Taylor), said as well. The Opposition spokesperson, the hon. Member for Stockton West (Matt Vickers) talked about welcoming the commitment to reduce knife crime by 50%, which is good—although our views on the figures about police in this country differ. I appreciate the Minister talking about how one of the top missions of this Government is to make our streets safer. That is about putting more resources into policing and about how we get those knives off our streets. I am glad that we are reviewing every bit of the current legislation and looking at the gaps regarding online retailers and how people are still getting these knives. Personal liability for the people who are selling them is absolutely essential. I am also glad about the work of Idris Elba and others around the coalition to tackle knife crime. It was great that the Prime Minister welcomed that coalition to the Cabinet table in September to tackle this issue. If we fulfil our commitment to halving knife crime in a decade, the rewards will not just be lives saved, but higher levels of trust in our communities, streets that feel safer and town centres that are more successful. The prevention of knife crime is not easy. There are no quick fixes for this, but it is our duty to try. Question put and agreed to. Resolved, That this House has considered the prevention of knife crime in the West Midlands.