Thank
you for contacting me regarding the Offensive Weapons Bill and
its restriction on the delivery of knives and blades sold online to a private
residential address.
I
appreciate that this is naturally an issue of concern to someone who would like
to purchase knives and blades but is housebound.
The
Offensive Weapons Bill forms a key part of the Government’s Serious Violence
Strategy, in response to recent increases in serious violence, especially in
knife crime, in England and Wales.
Under
the new provisions of the bill, knives sold online must only be delivered to
and collected - by the person who made the purchase - at a place where the age
of the purchaser can be checked.
The
primary motivation underpinning this new measure is the need to provide
additional safeguards to current legislations that already make it an offence
to sell knives to under-18s, as many online retailers have been struggling to
implement age checks for online sales.
While
it is important that we are able to prevent teenagers and children from
purchasing and obtaining knives online, I share your concerns that this measure
might disproportionately affect adult users of knives that are housebound and
members of rural communities, who have comparatively less access to the
proposed collection points and also have a more diverse range of legitimate
uses for specialist knives, which can often only be readily sourced
online.
The
Bill received its second reading on 27 June and is now moving to committee
stage. I note your concerns about section 15 of the Bill and will be seeking to
raise them when it receives further scrutiny before Parliament in due
course.
