Written question asked by John Hayes (Conservative) on Tuesday, 15 January 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 17 January 2008. It was answered by Lord Coaker (Labour) on Thursday, 6 March 2008 on behalf of the Home Office.

Offensive Weapons: Children

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent estimate her Department has made of the numbers of children who carry knives.

Answer: The Home Office funded the 2005 Offending, Crime and Justice survey, which was a household survey of people aged between 10 and 25 years. National level findings of this survey, which included questions on the carrying and use of knives, are published. The latest published figures indicate that 4 per cent. of young people aged between 10 and 17 years had carried a knife in the previous 12 months. The results from the 2005 survey can be found on the Home Office website at:"http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb1706.pdf"

Secondary information