The home secretary, Jacqui Smith, today unveiled what the government believes could help tackle knife crime: sending young offenders to meet stab victims and their relatives on A&E wards as well as into prisons to meet inmates jailed for knife crime offences.
The Conservatives called the plans ''half-baked'' and shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve went on to say the public was tired of "ill-thought-through, piecemeal announcements and failed initiatives".
At least nine people have been killed with knives in the past week and the number of teenagers to die violently in the capital rose to 20 at the end of last week.
Those personally affected by knife crime have also called for drastic measures. Brooke Kinsella, the sister of 16-year-old Ben, who was stabbed to death outside a pub in north London, said violent offenders should undertake compulsory national service.
An alternative was mooted in the Sunday Times today, which carried a poll saying that nine out of ten parents would support the idea of a nation wide youth curfew. A government source told the paper that while there were no plans afoot for such a thing, it was something that might be considered in hotspot areas.
Amid the reaction to the government proposals, Professor Rod Morgan, former chairman of the Youth Justice Board, told BBC Radio 4 that there was not conclusive evidence that using pre-emptive tactics to shock potential offenders was successful. "Generally speaking, the evidence from shock tactics of trying to show offenders some shocking possible consequence of their own behaviour - the record on that is not good from previous exercises."
However, restorative justice procedures, where the offender comes face to face with their victim, he said, have had "very positive" results.
