UK to Give Police Force $131Mln to Help Fight Surging Knife Crime - Treasury

15:50 GMT, 13 March 2019

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The UK will disburse 100 million pounds (about $131 million) to UK police forces next year to assist them in their fight against knife crime, which has been on the rise in the country in recent years, UK Chancellor Philip Hammond said during his half-year economic forecast address before the UK Parliament.

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"We will make available immediately to police forces in England an additional 100 million pounds over the course of the next year, ring-fenced to pay for additional overtime targeted on knife crime," Hammond said.

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Earlier in the month, UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid met with police chiefs from various jurisdictions to discuss the growing trend of knife crimes occurring in the United Kingdom. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick said ahead of the meeting that falling police numbers were responsible for the rise in violent crimes in the country.

According to the London Metropolitan Police, knife crime surged by 16 percent in London in 2018. The UK National Health Service presented data that showed a 93 percent increase in the number of children aged 16 and under who had been treated for stab wounds in England in 2018 compared to 2013.