Yvette Cooper is upping the maximum prison sentence for selling knives to under-18s from six months to two years after the Southport killings. Interesting timing, given that only yesterday Labour’s sentencing czar David Gauke was saying the government can’t afford to be ‘tough on crime’ and that these policies are clogging up prisons. A reminder that the Southport stabber, Radukabana, had already been referred to Prevent three times…
The new law won’t just punish individual shopkeepers—it’ll go straight to the top. That means the senior executives of a company could be held personally responsible, such as Amazon’s executive chairman Jeff Bezos. Policing Minister Diana Johnson hit the airwaves this morning to sell the policy. When LBC’s Nick Ferrari asked the obvious question—are company bosses such as Bezos really going to prison for this? Johnson proudly declared, yes:
“We’re very clear that if there are sales of knives to under-18s, we are increasing the sentence from six months to two years. So that could be the chief executive of a company selling knives online.”
Err…what?
Former leader of the SNP in Westminster Ian Blackford told Times Radio why he believes Nicola Sturgeon’s claim that she spent no time in the kitchen and therefore didn’t see any of her husband’s purchases:
“She doesn’t have a passion for cooking.”