Anthony Butcher

The Liberal Democrats are calling for urgent action to tackle the linked problems of gang culture and gun crime. An emergency motion proposed by Liberal Democrats in Liverpool and approved by the party conference in Brighton today calls for:
· A 24-hour border force, incorporating immigration, customs and police at all the UK’s ports to stop guns appearing on the streets
· A summit of police, local government leaders, the Home Secretary and others to find solutions to the problems of gang culture and gun crime
· Allowing the granting of anonymity to witnesses who are afraid to testify
· Additional resources for areas with high incidence of gun and violent crime, funded by scrapping ID cards



Full text of the motion follows:



Guns and Gangs


Conference notes:
i) The recent spate of shootings across the UK.
ii) That gun crime is down across the country; however, many recent victims have been children.
iii) That gun amnesties and one-off taskforces are not a long term solution.
iv) Recent polls which indicate that one in five men know how to get hold of a firearm.
v) Many communities feel disempowered and helpless in the face of growing gang culture, with witnesses afraid to speak out.
vi) That nine times as many customs officers work on seizing illegal cigarettes than work on seizing illegal guns.

Conference believes that:
a) It is essential that all partners come together at the earliest opportunity to strengthen existing links between agencies to ensure that all UK cities do not fall prey to the gun and gang culture.
b) Amnesties and one-off taskforces do not provide a long-term solution to the problem of gun crime.
c) High visibility policing will do far more to tackle gun crime than expensive identity cards.

Conference therefore calls for:
1) A 24-hour border force that would incorporate immigration, customs and police at all the UK’s ports to stop guns appearing on the streets.
2) A summit of representatives of leaders, Chief Constables, and other partners in cities across the UK with the Home Secretary, to ensure that national solutions can continue to be found to these problems which all towns and cities face.
3) The Government to give local authorities and the police real power to tackle gun and gang crime locally by allowing the granting of anonymity to witnesses who are afraid to testify.
4) The Home Office to recognise that those areas with high incidence of gun and violent crime require additional resources, funded by scrapping expensive and wasteful ID cards.


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