Haringey Liberal Democrat councillors are urging Labour to put politics to one side in order to deal with knife crime, as Labour at last begin to respond to public concern over rising numbers of offences involving bladed weapons.

Nationally, the Lib Dems had proposed an amendment to the recent Violent Crime Bill which would have made the sentence for carrying a knife equal to that for carrying a gun, and locally Haringey’s Liberal Democrat councillors tabled a motion proposing that Haringey Council support the move.

Labour voted down the proposal, and Haringey’s Labour councillors rejected the motion to Full Council, proposing instead that Haringey Council “reject a policy that would lead to people who happened to be carrying a knife filling our prisons”.

Councillor Ron Aitken, Lib Dem spokesperson for Crime, Policing and Community Safety, comments:

“Labour rejected our proposals for tougher penalties. Now we see Labour considering exactly the same proposals on a national level, so it is time Haringey Labour councillors thought again, as they always claim they are being tough on crime.

“We wanted these proposals months ago, and given the recent stabbing in Wood Green, it is clear that they have been needed. By playing politics, Labour is showing that it only care about votes, not about public safety.”