Latest news with #MartinCosser
Japan Today
02-08-2025
- Japan Today
UK ninja sword ban begins as 1,000 weapons surrendered in knife crime crackdown
FILE PHOTO: Martin Cosser sits on a memorial bench with a plaque honouring Charlie, Cosser's son, who was killed in a knife attack, at Devil's Punch Bowl, in Surrey, England, July 16, 2025. REUTERS/Catarina Demony/File Photo By Catarina Demony At least 1,000 weapons have been surrendered under a British government amnesty launched last month to combat knife crime, the interior ministry announced on Friday, as a new ban on ninja swords came into effect. Overall, knife crime in England and Wales has risen 87% over the past decade, with 54,587 offenses recorded last year alone, a 2% rise from 2023 and among the highest rates in Europe. On July 29, 2024, teenager Axel Rudakubana attacked a Taylor Swift-themed children's dance event in the northern English town of Southport, killing three girls and stabbing 10 people in one of Britain's most harrowing knife assaults. Since then, the government has pledged tougher age checks for knife buyers, warned social media firms they could face fines for failing to curb sales and promotion of weapons, and banned zombie-style knives, machetes and ninja swords. Over the month of July this year, the government urged young people to drop off weapons, including bladed ones, at "amnesty" bins or a mobile van - part of efforts to control knife crime, particularly when it involves youths. The government said at least 1,000 weapons have been handed in. A mobile van will be deployed at the Notting Hill Carnival in London later this month in response to past knife-related violence by a small number of attendees. It is unclear whether the "amnesty" bins will stay in place once the month-long campaign comes to an end. The interior ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Charities and experts call the government's efforts a step forward but say they fail to address the root causes. The interior ministry said that knife-related robberies have fallen in seven highest-risk areas, dropping from 14% of all robberies in the seven highest-risk areas in the year ending June 2024 to 6% in the same period to June 2025. The ban on buying and selling ninja swords is part of the government's pledge to introduce Ronan's Law, named in honor of 16-year-old Ronan Kanda, who was fatally stabbed with a ninja sword in 2022. Campaigner Martin Cosser, whose son was killed in a knife attack two years ago, previously told Reuters that the issue was not just about the weapon itself, but about the "emotional drivers" that lead people to carry knives in the first place. © (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2025.
New Straits Times
01-08-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
UK ninja sword ban begins as 1,000 weapons surrendered in knife crime crackdown
LONDON: At least 1,000 weapons have been surrendered under a British government amnesty launched last month to combat knife crime, the Interior Ministry announced today, as a new ban on ninja swords came into effect. Overall, knife crime in England and Wales has risen 87 per cent over the past decade, with 54,587 offences recorded last year alone, a two per cent rise from 2023 and among the highest rates in Europe. On July 29, 2024, a teenager attacked a Taylor Swift-themed children's dance event in the northern English town of Southport, killing three girls and stabbing 10 people in one of Britain's most harrowing knife assaults. Since then, the government has pledged tougher age checks for knife buyers, warned social media firms they could face fines for failing to curb sales and promotion of weapons, and banned zombie-style knives, machetes and ninja swords. Over the month of July this year, the government urged young people to drop off weapons, including bladed ones, at "amnesty" bins or a mobile van -- part of efforts to control knife crime, particularly when it involves youths. The government said at least 1,000 weapons have been handed in. A mobile van will be deployed at the Notting Hill Carnival in London later this month in response to past knife-related violence by a small number of attendees. It is unclear whether the "amnesty" bins will stay in place once the month-long campaign comes to an end. Charities and experts call the government's efforts a step forward but say they fail to address the root causes. The Interior Ministry said that knife-related robberies have fallen in seven highest-risk areas, dropping from 14 per cent of all robberies in the seven highest-risk areas in the year ending June 2024 to six per cent in the same period to June 2025. The ban on buying and selling ninja swords is part of the government's pledge to introduce Ronan's Law, named in honour of 16-year-old Ronan Kanda, who was fatally stabbed with a ninja sword in 2022. Campaigner Martin Cosser, whose son was killed in a knife attack two years ago, previously told Reuters that the issue was not just about the weapon itself, but about the "emotional drivers" that lead people to carry knives in the first place. — REUTERS
Straits Times
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
UK ninja sword ban begins as 1,000 weapons surrendered in knife crime crackdown
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: Martin Cosser sits on a memorial bench with a plaque honouring Charlie, Cosser's son, who was killed in a knife attack, at Devil's Punch Bowl, in Surrey, England, July 16, 2025. REUTERS/Catarina Demony/File Photo LONDON - At least 1,000 weapons have been surrendered under a British government amnesty launched last month to combat knife crime, the interior ministry announced on Friday, as a new ban on ninja swords came into effect. Overall, knife crime in England and Wales has risen 87% over the past decade, with 54,587 offences recorded last year alone, a 2% rise from 2023 and among the highest rates in Europe. On July 29, 2024, teenager Axel Rudakubana attacked a Taylor Swift-themed children's dance event in the northern English town of Southport, killing three girls and stabbing 10 people in one of Britain's most harrowing knife assaults. Since then, the government has pledged tougher age checks for knife buyers, warned social media firms they could face fines for failing to curb sales and promotion of weapons, and banned zombie-style knives, machetes and ninja swords. Over the month of July this year, the government urged young people to drop off weapons, including bladed ones, at "amnesty" bins or a mobile van - part of efforts to control knife crime, particularly when it involves youths. The government said at least 1,000 weapons have been handed in. A mobile van will be deployed at the Notting Hill Carnival in London later this month in response to past knife-related violence by a small number of attendees. It is unclear whether the "amnesty" bins will stay in place once the month-long campaign comes to an end. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Tech Reporting advanced suspected cyber attacks will provide a defence framework: Shanmugam World Trump modifies reciprocal tariffs ahead of deadline; rate on Singapore likely to remain at 10% Business Singapore's US tariff rate stays at 10%, but the Republic is not out of the woods yet Singapore NUS launches S'pore's first nursing practice doctorate to meet evolving healthcare needs Singapore Data breach involving 147,000 Cycle & Carriage Singapore customer records under probe Business CAD probing Tokenize Xchange operator; firm's director charged with fraudulent trading Singapore PM Wong to deliver National Day message on Aug 8 Singapore Man charged over kicking woman's face in Teck Whye Lane flat, leading to her death The interior ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Charities and experts call the government's efforts a step forward but say they fail to address the root causes. The interior ministry said that knife-related robberies have fallen in seven highest-risk areas, dropping from 14% of all robberies in the seven highest-risk areas in the year ending June 2024 to 6% in the same period to June 2025. The ban on buying and selling ninja swords is part of the government's pledge to introduce Ronan's Law, named in honour of 16-year-old Ronan Kanda, who was fatally stabbed with a ninja sword in 2022. Campaigner Martin Cosser, whose son was killed in a knife attack two years ago, previously told Reuters that the issue was not just about the weapon itself, but about the "emotional drivers" that lead people to carry knives in the first place. REUTERS
The Star
01-08-2025
- The Star
UK ninja sword ban begins as 1,000 weapons surrendered in knife crime crackdown
FILE PHOTO: Martin Cosser sits on a memorial bench with a plaque honouring Charlie, Cosser's son, who was killed in a knife attack, at Devil's Punch Bowl, in Surrey, England, July 16, 2025. REUTERS/Catarina Demony/File Photo LONDON (Reuters) -At least 1,000 weapons have been surrendered under a British government amnesty launched last month to combat knife crime, the interior ministry announced on Friday, as a new ban on ninja swords came into effect. Overall, knife crime in England and Wales has risen 87% over the past decade, with 54,587 offences recorded last year alone, a 2% rise from 2023 and among the highest rates in Europe. On July 29, 2024, teenager Axel Rudakubana attacked a Taylor Swift-themed children's dance event in the northern English town of Southport, killing three girls and stabbing 10 people in one of Britain's most harrowing knife assaults. Since then, the government has pledged tougher age checks for knife buyers, warned social media firms they could face fines for failing to curb sales and promotion of weapons, and banned zombie-style knives, machetes and ninja swords. Over the month of July this year, the government urged young people to drop off weapons, including bladed ones, at "amnesty" bins or a mobile van - part of efforts to control knife crime, particularly when it involves youths. The government said at least 1,000 weapons have been handed in. A mobile van will be deployed at the Notting Hill Carnival in London later this month in response to past knife-related violence by a small number of attendees. It is unclear whether the "amnesty" bins will stay in place once the month-long campaign comes to an end. The interior ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Charities and experts call the government's efforts a step forward but say they fail to address the root causes. The interior ministry said that knife-related robberies have fallen in seven highest-risk areas, dropping from 14% of all robberies in the seven highest-risk areas in the year ending June 2024 to 6% in the same period to June 2025. The ban on buying and selling ninja swords is part of the government's pledge to introduce Ronan's Law, named in honour of 16-year-old Ronan Kanda, who was fatally stabbed with a ninja sword in 2022. Campaigner Martin Cosser, whose son was killed in a knife attack two years ago, previously told Reuters that the issue was not just about the weapon itself, but about the "emotional drivers" that lead people to carry knives in the first place. (Reporting by Catarina Demony; editing by Mark Heinrich)
BBC News
08-07-2025
- BBC News
Campaigner Martin Cosser calls for renewed efforts on knife crime
Almost two years after the murder of his son, campaigner Martin Cosser says there was still "so much" that needs to be done to warn children of the dangers of knife Cosser, a member of a government taskforce, set up the charity Charlie's Promise following the death of his 17-year-old son, who was stabbed at a party in West Sussex in July has renewed calls for compulsory knife crime education, and told BBC South East that he's now spoken to over 40,000 pupils in the region since he started giving talks in schools last Home Office has been contacted by the BBC for comment. Mr Cosser, from Milford, Surrey, set up Charlie's Promise to educate young people about the dangers of carrying said his most important target was to get the discussion of knife crime onto the school syllabus - and particularly in primary schools. He has had two meetings with policing minister Dame Diana Johnson where he has called for this. Gun and knife crime is not mentioned specifically in the part of the school syllabus focusing on relationships, sex and the government says teaching does focus on situations which lead young people to carry weapons, such as involvement in gangs and county lines Department for Education says it allows schools discretion to tailor the content of the curriculum to suit the threats that face their pupils specifically. Mr Cosser has delivered more than 200 awareness talks in schools, and more than 10% of students reached have been at primary school."Children at that age are easily influenced," he said. "They are like sponges, they want to learn."He also told BBC South East how proud he is of the progress made so far."But there is so much more that we need to do," he added. While the feedback he received from pupils, parents and teachers was "encouraging", he said there was "a lot of things they didn't know about knife crime".Charlie Cosser's killer, Yura Varybrus, is currently serving a life sentence in prison. If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this story you can visit the BBC Action Line.
