§ Mr. Ede(by Private Notice) asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a Statement on his consideration of the possibility of bringing the possession in a public place of instruments and articles, other than firearms, capable of use as weapons in the commission of crimes of violence within the ambit of the law; and what action he proposes to take with regard to the sale of toy weapons.
§ The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Sir David Maxwell Fyfe)The use of offensive weapons in connection with crimes of violence has given rise to legitimate anxiety. Concern has also been expressed at the offer for sale to children of toy imitations of certain types of weapon. Her Majesty's Government have given careful consideration to both these problems.
On the first point, the House will recognise that there are many instruments which may be used as weapons for criminal purposes. Apart from lethal firearms and imitation firearms, which are already dealt with by the provisions of the Firearms Act, 1937, these instruments include genuine weapons such as life preservers, stilettos and knuckledusters; home-made instruments such as wooden bludgeons with razor blades inserted in them; and articles in day-to-day use for legitimate purposes, such as bicycle chains, knives, scissors and bottles.
Under the law as it stands, the mere possession of such an article in a public place is not an offence, however suspicious the circumstances, except at a public meeting or on the occasion of a public procession. It is important that Parliament should exercise extreme care before approving legislation which creates new criminal offences; but Her Majesty's Government think that in present conditions, when there is so much anxiety about crimes of violence, it would not be right to overlook the deterrent effect on criminals which would be achieved if it were made an offence to be found in possession of an offensive weapon, without lawful reason, in a public place or a place to which the public have access. Her Majesty's Government are at present 1792 examining the possibility of introducing legislation to achieve this object.
The sale to children of toy imitations of real weapons, such as the notorious rubber cosh, raises problems of a different character. Apprehension as to the effect of certain of these toys on the minds of children is no doubt well founded, and Her Majesty's Government were glad to see that the responsible trade associations took prompt action to advise retailers to exercise a proper discrimination between what I may call the traditional toys, such as tomahawks, bows and arrows, policemen's truncheons and harmless pistols, and the toys which represent weapons used by contemporary criminals.
In November, the National Chamber of Trade and the National Association of Toy Retailers gave advice to their members which could not be bettered, and with their agreement I am arranging for their statements to be reproduced in the OFFICIAL REPORT. My information is that the advice given by the trade associations found a ready response from reputable retailers, and that in many shops the articles complained of have been withdrawn from sale. Her Majesty's Government trust that any retailers who have so far been slow to act on this advice will recognise that it has behind it the full support of responsible public opinion throughout the country.
The mischief has, therefore, already been diminished by this action of the trade associations; and, in any event, Her Majesty's Government do not think that it is a problem which can appropriately be dealt with by restrictive legislation. In the first place, if legislation were introduced with a view to banning the sale of certain toys altogether or with a view to banning the sale of certain articles to young persons, it would not be possible to define the articles which were to be banned without at the same time covering many articles to which no one objects.
In the second place, Her Majesty's Government are reluctant to propose that Parliament should act as a censor of toys. It seems to them that it is for parents to decide what toys are suitable for their children. The information which we have suggests that the particular problem is not of great proportions, and in the view of Her Majesty's Government it is one which should be left to the good sense of traders and, above all, of parents.
§ Lieut.-Colonel LiptonIs the right hon. and learned Gentleman aware that some of this mischief can be diminished without restrictive legislation as, for example, in the case of Italian stilettos, which, according to an answer I received from the President of the Board of Trade in this House a little while ago, are imported freely into this country by some means or other by the name of "stationery"?
§ Sir D, Maxwell FyfeI do not think the hon. and gallant Member has quite grasped the difficulty. The difficulty is in classifying the imports in such a limited way as to form a class which would isolate stilettos. The other great difficulty is that the import restrictions are usable for balance of payments and not for moral purposes.
§ Following are the statements: