 Ban on wide range of knives, weapons, and firearms now in force Last year we supported a Home Office weapons surrender scheme ahead of new Government legislation which came into effect on Wednesday (14 July). The legislation – under the Offensive Weapons Act 2019 – means some weapons which were previously legal to own within the home are now illegal. It’s all part of our ongoing efforts to tackle violent crime. All weapons banned in public by the Criminal Justice Act 1988, including zombie knives, shuriken or death stars and knuckledusters, will now also be banned in private, meaning people can no longer keep them at home. Anyone unlawfully possessing a firearm covered by the ban will face up to 10 years in prison and those possessing one of the other weapons can be sentenced to up to six months imprisonment or a fine or both. Superintendent Gareth Morris, from our dedicated violence reduction team, Project Guardian, said: “We continue our work with local communities and a wide range of partners to combine our efforts to warn people, particularly youngsters, of the dangers of carrying weapons.” “It’s great that this legislation is now effective, it will help us take more dangerous weapons off our streets and better deal with those who choose to carry them. It’s also going to help prevent young people from getting hold of them in the first place.” Read more about the changes here. https://news.npcc.police.uk/releases/offensive-weapons-act-2019-bans-the-possession-of-dangerous-items-in-private Please report crime via 101 or 999 in an emergency not through WMNOW Attachments knives.png – 177.7 KB |
