Stricter age checks on sales of knives online announced after Southport attack
Southport murderer Axel Rudakubana used a knife that he bought from Amazon when he was still 17 to kill three girls at a dance class in July 2024.
People buying knives online will have to submit photo ID at the point of sale and again on delivery as part of stricter age verification checks to be introduced by the Government in the wake of the Southport attack.
Under the new two-step system, which will be mandated for all retailers selling knives online, buyers may need to submit an official identity document such as a passport or driving licence, as well as proof of address such as a utility bill, before showing ID again when the package is delivered.
People may also need to submit a current photo or video of themselves to an online retailer alongside their ID, the Home Office said.
Companies will only be able to deliver a bladed article to the same person who purchased it, and it will also be illegal to leave a package containing a bladed weapon on a doorstep when no one is in.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had promised urgent action to prevent under-18s buying knives online, saying it was “shockingly easy” for killers such as Southport murderer Axel Rudakubana to get their hands on weapons.
Rudakubana, aged 17 at the time, used a knife bought from Amazon to kill three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport, Merseyside, in July.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “It’s a total disgrace how easy it still is for children to get dangerous weapons online.
“More than two years after Ronan Kanda was killed with a ninja sword bought by a teenager online, too many retailers still don’t have proper checks in place.
“It’s too easy to put in false birth dates, parcels are too often being dropped off at a doorstop with no questions asked.
“We cannot go on like this. We need much stronger checks – before you buy, before it’s delivered.
“The measures I am setting out today will be crucial in addressing this problem and are part of our Plan for Change and mission to make streets safer.”
The sale of knives with a fixed blade of more than three inches long to under-18s is illegal in England and Wales, with retailers facing fines or prosecution if they breach the law.
Current laws require sellers to operate an age verification system that is likely to prevent a person under 18 from buying a knife, but the legislation does not stipulate the elements of such systems.
At Rudakubana’s sentencing on Thursday, prosecutors said he had bought two identical knives from Amazon on July 13 2024, taking steps to hide his identity when he did so “by using a virtual private network (VPN), which encrypts personal data”.
Amazon said it took its responsibility around the sale of bladed products “extremely seriously” and had launched an urgent investigation in relation to “this tragic case”.
It confirmed it used “trusted ID verification services” to validate the age of customers on orders of age-restricted items at purchase, and also followed an age verification delivery process requiring drivers to verify the recipient’s age.
In this case, its records showed the driver recorded a year of birth consistent with an adult and marked the recipient as visibly over 25-years-old, in accordance with its policies and industry practice.
The new measures announced by the Home Office on Sunday are to be included as part of the Crime and Policing Bill which is expected to be introduced to Parliament by spring, with more proposals still to come in the coming weeks.
Last year, Ms Cooper commissioned Commander Stephen Clayman, the national police lead on knife crime, to carry out a full review into the online sale and delivery of knives.
The full report is expected at the end of January and stronger ID checks are one of the recommendations, the Home Office said.
