The British government is reportedly planning on banning doorstep drop-off deliveries of knives bought online following the mass stabbing at a children’s dance party in Southport by second-generation migrant Axel Rudakubana.
While critics have pointed to multiple failings of authorities to heed warnings about Rudakubana’s radicalisation, the left-wing Labour Party government appears intent on pinning the tragic stabbing spree — which left three young girls dead and several others injured — at the hands of supposed loopholes in purchasing knives online.
According to The Telegraph, online retailers such as Amazon will be prevented from delivering a knife to anyone other than the person who purchased it to provide a further ID check to prove the buyer is above 18. This will come in addition to a two-step verification, in which buyers must provide identification and a ‘selfie’ picture to verify the ID is theirs.
Rudakubana, who was sentenced to 52 years in prison this week over the Southport stabbings, had reportedly skirted the pre-existing checks by using software to disguise his internet address and identity.
The delivery of the two knives he bought while under 18 was reportedly accepted by an adult at his residence, believed to be one of his Rwandan parents.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said that it is a “total disgrace how easy it still is for children to get dangerous weapons online,” adding: “We cannot go on like this. We need much stronger checks – before you buy, before it’s delivered.