Diane slams eBay over knife sales regulations

21 Jul 2010

Diane has slammed the decision by eBay to relax it’s regulations on the type of knives that it sells.

The internet auction site changed it’s rules last week and now allows people to buy knives that it once banned, such as ’multitools’ which is another name for a swiss army knife, an item which still remains on the banned list.

Diane, who will address the issue at a leadership hustings on criminal justice at Islington Town Hall this evening, says the relaxed laws send out the wrong impression and make it easier for young people to get their hands on knives.

Diane said:

“EBay’s decision to relax their regulations on the type of knives they sell is totally, utterly and socially irresponsible.

As an MP for an inner city borough, I have seen how knife crime has become a scourge on our streets. This year we have already seen as many deaths of young people as we had for the whole of last year.

What kind of message are we sending out to young people if we are allowing them to buy weapons on a well known internet auction site that have the capability to cause serious harm?

I want to see stricter laws on the way we allow dangerous items to be sold online. We need to take collective responsibility if we are to stop knives getting into the hands of young people and that includes sites like eBay”



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