§ Mr. BeithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the Lambeth firearms amnesty conducted by the Metropolitan Police. [20618]
§ Mr. MichaelThe local amnesty held in Lambeth during the month of November was a great success with 24 firearms in total being surrendered. This consisted of 16 handguns, four shot guns, two rifles and two air weapons. In addition, four imitation firearms and a canister of pepper spray were also surrendered. A large amount of ammunition was also handed in. The streets of South London are a little safer as a result of this initiative.
This was the first local, as opposed to national, amnesty to have been held and had the strong support of the local community and the Metropolitan Police. The number of items handed in during the local amnesty compares with only two guns handed in in Lambeth during the last national amnesty. We will continue to endorse similar initiatives in the future which have the same level of community and police support.