My Lords, does the Minister agree that there are probably
three major causes of the rise in violence, particularly
murders, that we have seen more of in London than perhaps
in the rest of the country? The first is the supply of
cocaine. Street-level dealing is now online
dealing—apparently it can be delivered quicker than
pizza—and something has to happen to intervene in that
supply. The National Crime Agency might do more
because 90% of cocaine comes from South America.
Street-level dealing has to be attacked by local police who
must do something about that. The Government could invest
more in that.
Secondly, more technology could help officers on the
streets to identify the people who carry knives. There are
clearly too many people carrying knives and we have to
intervene where that is happening to stop the almost
accidental use of knives.
Finally, there is a correlation between more young people,
particularly young men, gathering and a rise in violence.
We need to see more police resources invested in those
areas. Does the Minister agree that the investment of
resources in those areas in particular, where we have lost
24,000 police officers over the last few years, is vital
now—not in the long term—for a public health attempt to
improve the situation?
