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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Blair to hold summit on gun crime | Blair to hold summit on gun crime |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Tony Blair is due to host a gun crime summit at Downing Street, following a recent spate of fatal shootings. | |
| The prime minister and Home Secretary John Reid are expected to meet police, council leaders and community workers. | |
| Mr Blair has suggested the minimum age at which someone faces a mandatory five-year jail sentence for possessing a gun could be reduced from 21 to 17. | Mr Blair has suggested the minimum age at which someone faces a mandatory five-year jail sentence for possessing a gun could be reduced from 21 to 17. |
| Four people have been shot dead in London during the last month - three of them teenagers. | Four people have been shot dead in London during the last month - three of them teenagers. |
| 'Specific problem' | 'Specific problem' |
| Mr Blair has told the BBC he is considering criminalising gang membership and how to protect people giving evidence. | Mr Blair has told the BBC he is considering criminalising gang membership and how to protect people giving evidence. |
| But he insisted that gun crime was "a specific problem within a specific criminal culture". | But he insisted that gun crime was "a specific problem within a specific criminal culture". |
| There have been four fatal shootings in London this month, three of which were of teenagers in the south of the city - two of them killed in their own homes. | There have been four fatal shootings in London this month, three of which were of teenagers in the south of the city - two of them killed in their own homes. |
| A 28-year-old man was shot dead in Hackney, east London. | A 28-year-old man was shot dead in Hackney, east London. |
| GUN CRIME The number of people injured by firearms in England and Wales has more than doubled since 1998In 2005/2006, the number of gun murders fell by more than a third from 78 to 50There were 11,084 recorded firearms crimes in 2005/2006 - up 0.12% on previous yearLondon, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands account for 54% of recorded incidents Source: Home Office | GUN CRIME The number of people injured by firearms in England and Wales has more than doubled since 1998In 2005/2006, the number of gun murders fell by more than a third from 78 to 50There were 11,084 recorded firearms crimes in 2005/2006 - up 0.12% on previous yearLondon, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands account for 54% of recorded incidents Source: Home Office |
| Mr Reid, who visited south London on Wednesday, said the police could not tackle gun crime by themselves. | |
| "If we truly want a no-gun Britain, a no-gun country, then we all have to work together," he said. | |
| "Not just the police, not just more powers, but parents and people in the local communities facing their responsibilities." | |
| Mr Blair denied his announcements were a "knee-jerk response" to the recent killings. | |
| Last week, Conservative leader David Cameron called for fathers to be compelled to take a greater role in bringing up their children. | Last week, Conservative leader David Cameron called for fathers to be compelled to take a greater role in bringing up their children. |
| He argued that a lack of role models was fuelling gang culture. | He argued that a lack of role models was fuelling gang culture. |
| Mr Cameron said he backed tax breaks to help families stay together and promoting a "culture of responsibility and respecting authority". | Mr Cameron said he backed tax breaks to help families stay together and promoting a "culture of responsibility and respecting authority". |
| Lib Dem leader Sir Menzies Campbell said there were "no quick fixes" to the problem. | Lib Dem leader Sir Menzies Campbell said there were "no quick fixes" to the problem. |
| Meanwhile, Christian leaders are organising a "prayer walk" through the two London boroughs blighted by recent killings - Southwark and Lambeth. | |
| They say the walk, to take place later, will demonstrate the "total abhorrence of the vast majority of black Londoners to gun violence". |