Border Force also recorded a 61% rise in confiscations of other offensive weapons

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

The number of knives seized by Border Force has more than doubled in a year, official figures show.

Officers seized 7,668 bladed items at the UK’s borders in the year to September, compared with 3,800 in the previous 12 months.

Border Force also registered an increase in the number of other “offensive weapons” it seized, which rose by 61% from 4,056 to 6,534.

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The combined haul of 14,202 was almost double the 7,856 knives and weapons confiscated by the agency in the year before. The figures cover seizures made at all points of entry into the UK.

Detailed breakdowns were not published, but the Home Office said the majority of knives and offensive weapons were confiscated in postal, fast parcel and freight modes. It is an offence to import certain weapons into the UK.

Items subject to the restrictions include butterfly, zombie and “stealth” knives, samurai swords with curved blades over 50cm in length, knuckle-dusters and batons.

Some organisations are allowed to import and hold restricted items for specified purposes, such as police forces importing batons and truncheons.

Allowances are also made for theatrical performances, films and TV productions.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest It is an offence to bring certain types of knives into the UK. Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

A Home Office spokeswoman said: “Tackling the illegal smuggling of offensive weapons is a priority for Border Force.

“Last year (October 2017 to September 2018), officers prevented more than 14,000 knives and other offensive weapons and over 3,000 firearms reaching the streets of the UK.

“We work closely with intelligence colleagues, as well as other law enforcement agencies, to ensure that frontline work is focused on the areas of highest risk and emerging trends are quickly identified.

“Where possible offences are identified, we will not hesitate to pass on information to assist police forces or the National Crime Agency.”

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The findings come amid concern over serious violent crime, and knife crime in particular.

London has been particularly badly hit by an increase in violent crime, while national figures show forces in England and Wales have registered a jump in recorded homicides and offences involving a knife or sharp object.

Ministers have announced a number of measures designed to counter the rise in violent crime.

The offensive weapons bill includes a proposed ban on delivering potentially dangerous bladed items to a buyer’s home, following warnings that age-verification checks can be sidestepped online.