“We support a public health approach to tackling serious violent crime, which has become an increasing priority for councils."
Responding to measures announced in the Queen’s Speech on the Serious Violence Bill, Cllr Simon Blackburn, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Safer and Stronger Communities Board, said:
“We support a public health approach to tackling serious violent crime, which has become an increasing priority for councils.
“Early intervention and prevention needs to be central to this work, as opposed to relying solely on a criminal justice strategy. This requires the input of several partners, including those in the health and education sectors.
“We are unclear why the Crime and Disorder Act needs to be amended alongside the introduction of the new duty to prevent serious violence, and unless local areas are provided with the funding they need there will not be the necessary step-change to tackle serious violent crime.
“Following funding cuts to local youth services, youth offending teams and councils’ public health budgets, the Government needs to use the Spending Review to ensure councils have sustainable and long term funding to tackle serious violence in our towns and cities and help prevent communities, particularly young people, committing knife and gun crime, robbery and ‘county lines’ drug running.”