I am often asked for the reasons why I stood for Parliament. Prior to being an MP, I served our community as a trauma surgeon. On too many occasions during my medical career, I treated young people who had been the victim of stabbings and other serious violent crimes. Due to the skill and incredible teamwork of my NHS colleagues, we saved many lives – giving young people a second chance at life.
However, there were times when there were no second chances. Young people, who had their whole lives ahead of them, stopped in their tracks because of the decision of another individual to carry a knife. This inevitably left the victims’ families heartbroken and communities fractured. Violent crime, and particularly knife crime, plagues communities across the nation. Here in the West Midlands, we hear this story far too often.
I will always hold the experiences of caring for knife crime victims with me. It is why, in Parliament, I am holding the Government to account on their commitment to halve knife crime within a decade. I have challenged the Solicitor General to provide further details on their plan to reducing these violent crimes. My scrutiny of the Government’s knife crime strategy in Parliament has been highlighted by the West Midlands Police Federation.
In addition to challenging the Government on their policies, there are practical differences that I have been making in the campaign against knife crime. A prime example is the weapon surrender bin at Solihull Station. It was recently brought to my attention that the bin was blocked by a shipping container and hidden behind building works. After my intervention, the bin is now accessible once more – ensuring that lethal weapons can continue to be taken off our streets.
My campaign against knife crime also includes two significant educational pieces. Firstly, speaking with young people to help them make better decisions when faced with carrying a knife. In the last few weeks, I have visited Virtual Decisions in Birmingham, where I received a demonstration on the effective use of virtual reality to help improve the decision making of young people. I am pleased to see this programme is now being used at schools in Solihull and I will be hosting them in Parliament so that other MPs can engage in their work. Secondly, teaching life saving techniques in schools and the wider community to stop and control the bleeding following a life threatening injury. As part of this work, I have been calling on the Government to add this to the national curriculum.
I have also joined forces with citizenAID and The Daniel Baird Foundation to deliver stop the bleed training in both Parliament and the constituency. It is crucial we raise awareness of how to deliver life saving treatment in the event of knife inflicted emergencies.
To help support this work, in May, I will be walking the Solihull Way, a 20 mile walk from Castle Bromwich to Earlswood to fundraise £1,500 for The Daniel Baird Foundation. If you are able to donate, you could be saving a life. Please consider supporting me here.
