Yahoo News Number of fatal stabbings in England and Wales hits highest level since records began - in 1946
The number of fatal stabbings in England and Wales has hit the highest level since records started more than 70 years ago, according to an official report.
The Office for National Statistics said there were 285 homicides as a result of a knife or sharp instrument in the year to March 2018 – up 73 on the previous year and the highest number since the Home Office’s Homicide Index began in 1946.
The previous high was in the year ending March 2008, when there were 268 victims killed by a knife or a sharp instrument.
Diana Fawcett, chief officer at charity Victim Support, said: “We’re now witnessing the highest ever number of knife-related deaths and it’s deeply troubling that these rises are being driven by a huge increase in the number of young people whose lives are being lost to this epidemic.
“These figures further highlight the need for all agencies to come together to tackle this increasing crisis which is destroying lives and shattering communities.”
The figures come after Home Secretary Sajid Javid last week announced plans for new knife crime prevention orders that could be imposed on suspects aged 12 or over amid growing concerns over the scourge of knife crime.
The powers have received support from police but critics warn they risked unnecessarily criminalising young people.
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The ONS figures revealed year-on-year increases in the numbers of male and female victims of sharp instrument homicides, which rose 38% to 222 and 24% to 63 respectively.
Rises were most pronounced for male victims aged 16-24 and 25-34, figures showed.
There were 179 white victims of fatal stabbings, nearly two thirds of the total, while 70, or a quarter, were black.
This was both the highest number and proportion of black victims since these data were first collected in the year ending March 1997, while the number of white victims was the highest for a decade.
The report said: “There are likely to be important socio-economic factors in homicides that cannot be examined using Homicide Index data. There is evidence from other studies that suggests that ethnicity is just one of many factors in homicides and violent incidents in general.”
“The rise in homicide seen in recent years has been most pronounced in male victims and those in younger age groups,” the analysis said.
