to think wtf? lilly allen meets boris johnson to discuss knife crime.

[HermanMunster]

i mean seriously, whatever about using celebrities in advertisments or awareness campaigns, to act as though they are actively involved in the political process is just ridiculous.
what the hell is a privately educated, celebrities daughter who sings going to know about "solving" knife crime.
do the government assume that because she is part of the current "mockney" cool movement, she obviously knows all about crime and disenfranchised youth.

i mean fair enough, i understand wanting to use your celebrity to do some good, but why is she being given an audience with the lord mayor when she has absolutely no expertise on the subject?she's a singer. i would have thought the people to discuss possible solutions to the problem would be the qualified experts on the subject.although i may be wrong as her solution does seem pretty solid. "She had written a blog urging UK citizens to stop "stabbing each other in the UK"."
problem solved.

www.nme.com/news/lily-allen/38248

www.mirror.co.uk/showbiz/latest/2008/07/17/lily-allen-meets-mayor-boris-johnson-to-talk-knife-crime- 89520-20652413/

sorry rant over.

[UnquietDad]

Becoz her dad is wellard innit

[DeeRiguer]

LOL blu

a concert kind of makes it go away i think..after THE CONCERT its suddenly not much of an issue really..

mrsmacaroon..i hope the best thing that can come out of all this is that the carrying of knives will finally be licensed like guns ..it has to be made unacceptable to carry a knife..this would also benefit all citizens

am sorry if you feel media coverage is only londoncentric but there are loads of young people losing life here almost daily basis.....other parts of the country its happening too, i hear it reported..

am not born southerner and know life is beyond m25..

[MrsMacaroon]

i'm sure Gordon and Jimmy will really get to the heart of those pressing issues.

[TheFallenMadonna]

LOL

[Blu]

It's an innovative, cool, effective and totally pioneering solution to a simple problem... To the same ends, I will shortly be meeting with Gordon Ramsay to discuss the pollution of deep space by obsolete Russian satellites, and my DS, 7, will meet Jimmy SAville to find a solution to the high number of CS deliveries at our local hospital.

[butwhybutwhy]

I thought the comment about putting on a concert utterly ridiculous.

Wtf is a concert going to do!

[MrsMacaroon]

Well scotland has always been knife crime central yet no-one has ever organised 'knife aid' or held summits to discuss it...I certainly doubt Lily Allen is losing any sleep about it. When I was in my late teens and football casuals were at their height, many of my male friends were victims and one friend was stabbed to death and died in the arms of his younger brother- he had been trying to defend his friend who was also stabbed. I doubt that was even reported in any of the national newspapers or thought of as national concern.

This is yet another example of the London based media whipping up a frenzy and on the whole making a bad situation worse. Imagine being a young male living in London, all the papers are reporting people being stabbed left, right and central....that young male is much more likely to arm himself as a result.

In my opinion the types of young men that would typically arm themselves or get involved in street crime are hugely unlikely to give two shits about what Lily Allen thinks or says...

[totalmisfit]

if the number of stab wounds at a&e is indeed rising, yet knife crime is falling - doesn't that indicate that either people aren't reporting it - or the police aren't doing their jobs properly - after all something is only a 'crime' if it is logged as one by the police. Crime taking place doesn't necessarily get it into the statistics.

[DeeRiguer]

totalmisfit
not so, if its same stats i am thinking of..apparently they dont include any crime by 16 year olds (dont ask me why, it was on that This Week, last night)

we live in area where there were 4 in one day! and many more spread out in recent times

am like abe lincoln when it comes to stats..its lies, damn lies & statistics

[scottishmum007]

well this makes more sense than Rachel Hunter promoting internet safety....

[ScottishMummy]

foofy - great word love the image too

[NotQuiteCockney]

I mean, obviously, she wears the big foofy skirts to hide the knives (machetes, etc etc) and the trainers so she can sneak up on people and then run away real quick.

It's really obvious.

[NotQuiteCockney]

Ah, but everyone knows, most London stabbings are actually done by Lilly Allen. Her music career's taken off, she's busy playing gigs, doesn't have enough time to wander around knifing people.

And Boris is just working to keep her busier. Duh.

[rebelmum1]

typical detached, disconnected politician if you ask me

[rebelmum1]

ha ha yes send him to talk to the ones with the knives!

[ScottishMummy]

if people feel alarmed then yes it is worth getting "worked up about".perception of crime is influential in how we view quality of life.

No of stab wound injuries presenting to A&E is rising.

The capital accounted for more than a third of all under-16s taken to hospital with stab wounds last year, and has seen numbers of teenagers needing treatment rise from 139 in 2002-03 to 324 in 2006-07.

[totalmisfit]

Knife crime has actually fallen 16% in the past year.

And yet we're expected to believe there's an epidemic worth getting worked up over. i expect the high profile coverage of recent deaths is more down to ratings grabbing and selling newspapers than a genuine trend.

let's all just calm down, we're less likely to be the victim of a crime, violent or otherwise than at any other point since records began.

[ScottishMummy]

Jette depends public consultations can be vociferious and vocal and can change HA plans

[DeeRiguer]

agree double bluff
he could get down and meet the real kids this is happening too
they are not that far away, geographically at least...

[jette]

Hmmm - well it does make sense to have public consulation. Hypothetically if there was a large group of public consultees whos opinions went against that of the medical professionals what would happen? Would it be noted and quickly dropped, or would serious consideration have to be given to the opinion?

[donnie]

'knife aid'? are you serious? i don't know whether to laugh or cry at that one, really I don't.

[ScottishMummy]

anyone can contribute to any NHS public consultation on any NHS topic. local pct and Trusts and doh seek public contributions

in fact you can voluntee to join NHS trusts and contribute a range of topics

In particular foundation trusts are compelled to have a certain amount of members of public on the board

[donnie]

I saw the photo of them 'talking' in the paper yesterday and felt they were well suited. So down with the kids, the pair.

[jette]

"actually NHS public consultations are just that, responses gathered from the public on a particular topic inc pg and childbirth.so actually maybe a DM reader contributed to your local PCT and trust strategy for nhs provision Given the huge circulation, most likely in fact"

Is this true?! Do you have to have had some experience of pregnancy and childbirth in order to contribute?

[ScottishMummy]

social inclusion is not promoted by excluding selected groups in decision making eg knife policy let's not ask the non knife carrying kids because they know nuffink