Knife-buying age to rise in Britain

LONDON, Dec. 12 (UPI) -- Britons younger than 18 are to be banned from buying knives according to a new plan by the government, the London Express reported Sunday.

Home Secretary David Blunkett wants to raise the minimum age to buy a knife from 16 to 18, the age at which youths can buy alcohol and fireworks.

"I think that there is a very strong argument for having to be 18 to buy a knife, just as with alcohol and fireworks," Blunkett said, calling the problem of young people carrying knives in schools and on the streets a "dual menace."

The move would come amid calls for tougher punishment for knife crimes, which are on the rise as the number of gun crimes falls.