Ross Kemp Labels National Knife Crime Increase “Truly Frightening”

Ross Kemp has described the national rise in knife crime over the past decade as “truly frightening”. The actor, known for his documentaries on gang culture, expressed shame regarding incidents involving knives in Essex, his home county. Data for England and Wales shows that serious offences involving a knife or sharp object recorded in the year concluding March 2024 were 54% greater than the corresponding figure from 2016. Kemp urged young individuals to reinforce the message that carrying a knife is “socially unacceptable”. Speaking to BBC Essex, he stated, “The increase in the amount of knife crime we’ve seen in the last decade or so has been truly frightening at all levels.” He advised, “If you want to, go and join a jiu-jitsu club. If you want to go fighting, go and join a boxing club.” Kemp added, “These are skills you’ll have for life and you won’t need to carry a piece of metal around in your pocket.” The 60-year-old, widely recognized for his role as Grant Mitchell in EastEnders, further commented that there was “nothing glamorous” about carrying a weapon. He warned, “People who carry knives often end up being stabbed with the actual knife they’re carrying.” Kemp made these remarks following several blade-related incidents in Southend-on-Sea during the summer period. While expressing great affection for the seaside city, he conceded he was “not proud of behaviour like that”. In Essex, knife crime offences recorded in the 12 months leading up to March 2024 exceeded the 2016 figure by more than double. Nevertheless, the Office for National Statistics indicates that these figures have shown a slight plateau both in Essex and across the nation since 2021. An Essex Police spokesman highlighted a 20% reduction in knife-enabled crime in the southern part of the county during the year ending in June. The police force registered 504 such offences in that region, a decrease from 632 in the preceding year. The spokesman also mentioned that a knife surrender scheme resulted in over 200 blades being turned in at police stations throughout the county between August and September. For updates on Essex news, follow BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external websites. Information on our external linking policy is available.