Former Peterborough judge calls for Chancellor Rachel Reeves to impose tax on kitchen knives to cut crime and save lives

Nic Madge, who was resident judge at Peterborough Crown Court from 2011 to 2014, made the call in the wake of a major conference in London aiming to tackle Britain’s knife crime crisis.

The Reducing Knife Harm Conference, which took place on Thursday November 20, united experts from government, policing, academia, public health and charities to discuss evidence-based solutions and public attitudes.

One of the key topics under discussion was the growing call for widespread adoption of round-tipped kitchen knives in place of the pointed blades commonly found in homes.

The conference explored how redesigning everyday knives, particularly through rounded-tip innovations, can maintain full kitchen functionality while significantly reducing their potential for harm.

Now, speaking ahead of the Budget, His Honour Nic Madge, a former Circuit Judge and the Co-Founder of Safer Knives Group, has issued an open-letter to the Chancellor calling for action.

In the past, His Honour Nic Madge has suggested a redesign of kitchen knives – giving them a rounded end, rather than a pointed end.

In his letter, Nic Madge writes: “There are millions of pointed knives in circulation. Many police forces are launching knife surrender schemes and proactively going into homes where there is a risk of knife violence, removing pointed knives and replacing them with rounded knives. That is very positive but not enough.

“Some people call for a ban on new pointed kitchen knives, but expert chefs, butchers and fishmongers need them. An easier and less controversial method would be to create a price differential. The imposition of a 5p charge for single use plastic bags rendered them obsolete. In the absence of agreement from manufacturers and retailers, Rachel Reeves should use the budget to impose a tax of, say, £20 on every pointed knife more than 3 inches long that is manufactured or imported into the UK.

“We can debate the amount of any tax, but £20 would have a minimal effect on businesses: a plate of fish and chips can cost £20 in London and it is nothing compared with the value of a life lost. Duties on tobacco and alcohol provide a precedent for taxes on items which cost the NHS, and fuel tax is an example of a fixed-sum tax (52.95p per litre).

“It would be easier to collect and enforce a tax on manufacturers and importers, than to target retailers. It would enable HMRC to seize any imported knives on which duty is not paid. Arguably, total knife sales would not be adversely affected.

“If anything, with the ability to advertise and openly display knives, manufacturers’ and retailers’ markets could increase. And it would give British manufacturers (many of whom already produce rounded knives) a commercial advantage over foreign importers.

“Finally, a knife tax would cost the government nothing. Indeed, in the short term, it would be a very small step towards filling Rachel Reeves’s black hole. In the long term, it would reduce knife harm.”

The latest crime figures, released in October 2025, show that here was a 33 per cent rise in the number of possession of weapon offences in Peterborough between July 2024 and June 2025.

A series of amnesties have been held in the past in a bid to take knives off the streets.

Former Judge’s letter in full

Sadly, knife crime is never out of the news. The Southport Public Inquiry continues to hear harrowing evidence about the murders of Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice da Silva Aguiar and Bebe King. Earlier this month ten people were injured during a knife attack on an LNER train.

As a circuit judge, I sentenced numerous offenders guilty of serious violence. Many defendants who carried knives were youths, often in their early teens. The weapons most frequently used in street crime and domestic violence are kitchen knives, lethal weapons found in every kitchen drawer. Kitchen knives were used in the Southport and LNER attacks.

The statistics are shocking. In the year 2024 to 2025 there were around 53,000 offences involving knives or sharp instruments in England and Wales. In the 12-months ending in March 2024, there were 262 homicides caused by knives or sharp instruments: almost half of all killings. Home Office statistics show that in such homicides, over half the weapons are kitchen knives. On average two people are killed by kitchen knives every week. But these statistics do not include other harm caused by kitchen knives: accidents, self-harm and suicide. Nor do they reveal the true cost: young lives cut short; devastation to families; physical harm; emotional trauma which is hard to heal; and potentially productive lives ruined by incarceration. The financial cost is also huge. Violence costs the NHS around £3 billion each year. The average cost of treating a patient suffering from a knife wound is £7,196. The cost of knife harm to society (including the criminal justice system and benefits) has been estimated at £29.9 billion each year.

Knife crime is a complex issue. There is no single, simple solution. Governments of all complexions have grappled with the problem for a decade. The latest statistics show a slight reduction, but far more needs to be done, especially if the government is to meet its manifesto commitment to halve knife harm within ten years. Heavy sentences have a role to play. They keep offenders off the streets. Any murderer who carries a knife faces life imprisonment, serving a minimum of 25-years before eligibility for parole. But tough sentences rarely act as a deterrent. The most serious injuries are often caused by offenders with mental health problems. Many youths are incapable of rationally thinking through the consequences of their actions.

As part of the solution, many experts advocate a public health approach to kitchen knife design. We know that the points of knives penetrate rib cages and sever arteries, causing life-threatening and fatal injuries. Knives with rounded tips may injure but are less likely to kill. Research from De Montford University proves this. So, changing the design of kitchen knives would be an important step towards reducing knife harm. Round-tipped knives should become the norm, rather than pointed knives.

There are millions of pointed knives in circulation. Many police forces are launching knife surrender schemes and pro-actively going into homes where there is a risk of knife violence, removing pointed knives and replacing them with rounded knives. That is very positive but not enough.

Some people call for a ban on new pointed kitchen knives, but expert chefs, butchers and fishmongers need them. An easier and less controversial method would be to create a price differential. The imposition of a 5p charge for single use plastic bags rendered them obsolete. In the absence of agreement from manufacturers and retailers, Rachel Reeves should use the budget to impose a tax of, say, £20 on every pointed knife more than 3 inches long that is manufactured or imported into the UK. We can debate the amount of any tax, but £20 would have a minimal effect on businesses: a plate of fish and chips can cost £20 in London and it is nothing compared with the value of a life lost. Duties on tobacco and alcohol provide a precedent for taxes on items which cost the NHS, and fuel tax is an example of a fixed-sum tax (52.95p per litre).

It would be easier to collect and enforce a tax on manufacturers and importers, than to target retailers. It would enable HMRC to seize any imported knives on which duty is not paid. Arguably, total knife sales would not be adversely affected. If anything, with the ability to advertise and openly display knives, manufacturers’ and retailers’ markets could increase. And it would give British manufacturers (many of whom already produce rounded knives) a commercial advantage over foreign importers.

Finally, a knife tax would cost the government nothing. Indeed, in the short term, it would be a very small step towards filling Rachel Reeves’s black hole. In the long term, it would reduce knife harm.