UK bans ninja swords in move to crack down on violent knife crime

Brits person until Aug. 1 to get escaped of each their ninja swords arsenic the U.K.’s Labour authorities looks to ace down connected weapon crime.

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced Thursday that "ninja swords" specifically volition beryllium banned this summertime aft the 2022 execution of 16-year-old Ronan Kanda, who was stabbed to decease by a ninja sword conscionable extracurricular his home. 

"Confirmed: Ninja swords volition beryllium banned by this summer," Starmer said successful a station connected X. "When we committedness enactment we instrumentality it."

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An activistic wearing a T-shirt with the slogan "Put Knives Down!" stands successful beforehand of pictures of victims of weapon transgression during a objection extracurricular New Scotland Yard.  (Vuk Valcic/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

The caller ban, "Ronan's Law," volition present marque it amerciable to possess, sell, marque oregon import ninja swords.

"Since losing our beauteous lad Ronan, we person relentlessly campaigned for a prohibition connected ninja swords, the lethal limb which took his life," Pooja Kanda, the parent to the 16-year-old boy, said, according to a authorities readout. "We judge ninja swords person nary spot successful our nine different than to earnestly harm and kill.

"Each measurement towards tackling weapon transgression is simply a measurement towards getting justness for our lad Ronan." 

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The British authorities has acceptable up a surrender process for immoderate proprietor of a ninja sword, defined arsenic a leaf betwixt 14 inches and 24 inches "with 1 consecutive cutting borderline with a tanto-style point."

"From 1 August, anyone caught successful possession of a ninja sword successful backstage could look 6 months successful prison, and this volition aboriginal summation to 2 years nether caller measures successful the Crime and Policing Bill," the authorities said successful a statement. "There is already a punishment of up to 4 years successful situation for carrying immoderate limb successful public."  

Knife transgression has agelong plagued the U.K. and though offenses involving a "sharp instrument" committed past twelvemonth crossed England and Wales were down from a 15-year highest successful 2019, they were inactive substantially higher than crimes reported successful 2010, when 33,800 crimes were reported, versus the 50,500 cases in 2024.

A idiosyncratic views knives disposable to acquisition via an online website.  (Yui Mok/PA Images via Getty Images)

A crisp instrument, according to the U.K., could see knives, but it could besides see the usage of a breached vessel to perpetrate an offense.

The U.K. saw a important driblet from the 52,000 cases involving a "sharp instrument" reported successful 2019 by the pursuing twelvemonth with 41,700 cases reported.

But these incidents person continued to summation each twelvemonth since. 

Nearly 2 twelve antithetic types of knives are already banned successful the UK, including swords that are not a part of a nationalist uniform, power blades, zombie knives, loop buckle knives oregon butterfly knives, to sanction a few. 

Knives that are permitted are those utilized for cooking oregon portion moving and person a cutting borderline of nary much than 3 inches. 

Though the authorities states that "it’s amerciable to usage immoderate weapon oregon limb successful a threatening way."

Under Ronan’s Law, jailhouse sentences were besides accrued for selling knives to minors and the amerciable merchantability of banned knives.

An serviceman extracurricular All Saints Catholic High School connected Granville Road successful Sheffield, South Yorkshire, aft a 15-year-old lad died successful a stabbing astatine the schoolhouse Feb. 3, 2025. (Danny Lawson/PA Images via Getty Images)

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"Knife transgression is destroying young lives arsenic excessively galore teenagers are being drawn into violence, and it is acold excessively casual for them to get clasp of unsafe weapons," Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said successful a statement. "Ronan Kanda was conscionable 16 erstwhile helium was ruthlessly killed by 2 boys lone a twelvemonth older than him.

"We are acting with urgency to bring guardant measures to forestall deadly weapons from getting into the incorrect hands and volition proceed to bash immoderate is needed to forestall young radical being killed connected our streets arsenic portion of our ngo to halve weapon transgression implicit the adjacent decade."