Offensive Weapons Bill to introduce ‘tough’ barriers on online sale of knives

Michael Matheson

The bill will mean online retailers cannot sell knives online without “rigorous” age-verification, and will no longer be able to deliver knives to residential addresses or drop-off points.

The proposed new laws, which combine both devolved and reserved issues around offensive weapons, will also ban the sale of the most dangerous corrosive products to under 18s, and make it an offence to be in possession of a corrosive substance in public.

Justice Secretary Michael Matheson said: “I wrote to the UK government in January 2017 raising concerns about the online sale of knives and the need for a joint approach – I’m glad to see this bill will address these issues and ensure more barriers are put in place to stop young people accessing knives and other offensive weapons online.

“We are resolute in our determination to tackle violent crime, and this bill, on which we have engaged closely with the UK government, ensures we are going further to prevent incidents with offensive weapons from happening in the first place, as well as future-proofing the law.

“Possession of offensive weapons was down 69 per cent from 2006 to 2016, and we are continuing to work with schools and local authorities on anti-violence campaigns to reduce incidents further.”