Zombie-Style knives and machetes were banned from sale and possession on 24 September 2024. Under new provisions in the Crime and Policing Act 2026, anyone caught selling or possessing such a weapon, where a legal defence does not apply, may face up to 2 years imprisonment, a fine, or both. The provisions in the 2026 Act will be brought into force shortly.

The Crime and Policing Act 2026 will also provide the police with the power to issue content removal notices to require social media companies, online marketplaces, and search services to remove unlawful knife and offensive weapons content.  Failure to remove this content could result in both the company and a designated senior executive facing significant penalties. This meets the Government’s manifesto commitment to hold the senior executives of online companies accountable for flouting the rules around online knife sales.

The Government is also providing £2m funding in 2026/07 to the new police unit, the National Knife Crime Centre (NKCC), to tackle the illegal online sale of knives. The NKCC coordinates policing activities and investigations into unlawful online knife and offensive weapons sales. It also acts as a coordination point for industry, including retailers, online companies, Ofcom and Trading Standards. The Centre will also provide the coordinating function for policing for the provisions in the Crime and Policing Act 2026 for the reporting of bulk online sales of knives and the issuing of content removal notices to online companies and platforms to remove unlawful knife and weapons sales content.

The Government takes road safety seriously and recognises the important role that roads policing and speed enforcement play in reducing the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads. Operational policing decisions, however, are taken locally by chief officers based on local needs and priorities.

The Home Office has not made an assessment of the effectiveness of average speed cameras in supporting the enforcement of speed limits in urban areas, nor has it had discussions with West Midlands Police regarding its approach to enforcement of speeding offences. Decisions on the deployment of speed cameras, including the type of camera used and where it is installed, the deployment of roads policing officers and the enforcement of speeding offences are operational matters for Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners. Speed enforcement forms part of wider operational road safety activity undertaken by police forces in response to local risks and priorities.

The Government takes road safety seriously and recognises the important role that roads policing and speed enforcement play in reducing the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads. Operational policing decisions, however, are taken locally by chief officers based on local needs and priorities.

The Home Office has not made an assessment of the effectiveness of average speed cameras in supporting the enforcement of speed limits in urban areas, nor has it had discussions with West Midlands Police regarding its approach to enforcement of speeding offences. Decisions on the deployment of speed cameras, including the type of camera used and where it is installed, the deployment of roads policing officers and the enforcement of speeding offences are operational matters for Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners. Speed enforcement forms part of wider operational road safety activity undertaken by police forces in response to local risks and priorities.

In the UK people are free to gather and protest, provided this remains lawful. Where groups engage in unlawful behaviour, including actions that are violent or cause harassment, alarm, or distress to others, the police have powers to respond. The use of these powers are an operational matter for the police. The Public Order Act 1986 grants police powers to manage protests to protect the public from serious disruption or harm while safeguarding the right to peaceful protest.

The Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 provides the police, local authorities and other local agencies with a range of tools and powers that they can use to respond to anti-social behaviour. The powers in the 2014 Act are deliberately local in nature, and it is for local agencies to determine whether their use is appropriate in the specific circumstances.

Local authorities can issue Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPO) to place restrictions in a specified area where the behaviour has had or is likely to have a detrimental effect on the quality of life of those in the locality, is persistent or continuing and is unreasonable. Police are also able to issue dispersal directions for up to 48 hours to direct individuals to leave a specified area if the police are satisfied on reasonable grounds that their behaviour is contributing or likely to contribute to members of the public being harassed, alarmed or distressed, or the occurrence of crime and disorder.

Shop theft and violence towards shop workers is unacceptable, and we must protect those hard working and dedicating staff. That is why, through our Crime and Policing Act, we have introduced a new specific standalone offence of assaulting a retail worker. This bespoke offence will send a clear signal to perpetrators that assaults on retail workers are unacceptable and won’t go unpunished.

We are also strengthening the powers available to the police and other local agencies through the Crime and Policing Act. This includes increasing the upper limit for fixed penalty notices for breaches of PSPOs from £100 to £500, increasing the time a dispersal direction can be implemented for from 48 to 72 hours and introducing Respect Orders which will give local agencies stronger enforcement capability to tackle the most relentless adult ASB offenders.

The Home Office publishes data on illegal working enforcement activity, including the number of visits and arrests conducted by Immigration Enforcement teams by region.

The number of illegal working enforcement visits increased from over 6,000 in 2019 to almost 13,000 in 2025 while the number of arrests from these visits has increased from over 3,000 in 2019 to around 9,000 in 2025.

This data is published on GOV.UK alongside illegal working enforcement statistics: A full regional breakdown of illegal working visits and arrets for each year is available on GOV.UK:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/returns-from-the-uk-and-illegal-working-activity-since-july-2024/illegal-working-and-enforcement-activity-to-the-end-of-december-2025

The Home Office publishes data on illegal working enforcement activity, including the number of visits and arrests conducted by Immigration Enforcement teams by region.

The number of illegal working enforcement visits increased from over 6,000 in 2019 to almost 13,000 in 2025 while the number of arrests from these visits has increased from over 3,000 in 2019 to around 9,000 in 2025.

This data is published on GOV.UK alongside illegal working enforcement statistics: A full regional breakdown of illegal working visits and arrets for each year is available on GOV.UK:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/returns-from-the-uk-and-illegal-working-activity-since-july-2024/illegal-working-and-enforcement-activity-to-the-end-of-december-2025

On 19 May, the Government announced a £30 million crackdown targeting cash intensive business such as barber shops, vape stores, mini-marts and sweet shops operating on our high streets, over three years. This includes £20million in funding towards an enhanced law enforcement response and the creation of a new cross-government High Street Organised Crime Unit to tackle this threat.

Raids are carried out by the police and local authorities. The Home Office does not hold data on the total number of raids in relation to vape shops in England in the past ten calendar years.

The police are operationally independent and work in line with College of Policing guidance to respond to hate crime.

However, the Government expects the police to take strong actions against these crimes and work with the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure perpetrators are brought to justice.

Decriminalised parking enforcement, rests with local authorities, who are best placed to manage local road networks and issue penalty charge notices. This is set out in statutory guidance for local authorities in England on civil enforcement of parking contraventions issued by Department for Transport. This approach removes a burden from the police, allowing them to focus on criminal activity.

However, the police retain powers to act where vehicles are dangerously or obstructively parked, including powers to remove those vehicles where necessary.

Operational decisions about enforcement activity, including on red lines and areas of decriminalised parking enforcement such as Westminster Bridge, are primarily for Transport for London, the relevant local authorities and on some occasions police, to decide, according to the specific circumstances.

The Home Office has not issued specific guidance to police forces on enforcing dangerous parking in areas subject to decriminalised parking enforcement. The police decide operational responses, based on specific circumstances, according to threat and risk assessments.

The Home Office has not made an assessment of the effectiveness of enforcement activity in relation to ice cream vans or pedicabs parked on red lines on Westminster Bridge. Enforcement in this case is primarily a matter for Transport for London and the local authority responsible for red routes and street trading,

The Home Office coordinates the government’s counter-drone policy. We lead work to understand potential risks posed by the misuse of drones and emerging technologies to ensure we have the right capabilities, personnel, training and powers to address these risks.

In 2019, the Home Office supported the creation of the National Police Chiefs' Council Counter-Drones Unit to provide strategic leadership to policing on counter-drones capabilities; how and when the police use their powers and capabilities is an operational matter. The Home Office maintains the importance of operational independence and does not routinely comment on operational decision making or individual force funding decisions. However, the Home Office does work closely with the police to ensure that they provide the appropriate information and training to local forces who may need to respond to reports of the possible misuse of drones.

The Air Traffic Management and Unmanned Aircraft Act, National Security Act, and upcoming Armed Forces Bill provide police and others with powers to respond to drone misuse. We consistently look for opportunities to update legislation and ensure that police have the powers they need.

The police have a suite of powers under the Road Traffic Act 1988 and Police Reform Act 2002 to seize e-scooters and e‑bikes being used illegally or antisocially, including ‑for offences such as riding on the pavement and in pedestrian areas.

We are strengthening enforcement through the Crime and Policing Bill, by removing the requirement for police to issue a warning before seizing vehicles used antisocially. We have also consulted on measures to allow police to dispose of seized vehicles, including e-scooters and e-bikes, more quickly, helping to tackle dangerous and anti-social behaviour impacting communities.

Enforcement of road traffic law is an operational matter for Chief Officers, who decide how to deploy resources in line with local policing priorities.

The Home Office has not had recent discussions with Police Scotland or Scottish trading standards bodies in relation to realistic imitation firearms that are not readily convertible to fire live ammunition. Chief Constables have operational responsibility for enforcing the legislation which applies to realistic imitation firearms.

Section 36 of the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 makes it an offence for a person to manufacture, sell, import or cause a realistic imitation firearm to be brought into Great Britain and it also makes it an offence to modify an imitation firearm so that it becomes a realistic imitation firearm. Section 37 of that Act provides for specified defences to this offence which include making the realistic imitation firearm available for theatrical performances, the production of films or television programmes, and the organisation and holding of certain historical re-enactments or skirmishing activities.

In addition, it is an offence under section 19 of the Firearms Act 1968 for a person to have an imitation firearm in their possession in public without lawful authority or reasonable excuse.

There has been action taken by the National Crime Agency and police forces in England and Wales against certain types of imitation firearms that have been found to be readily convertible into lethal firing firearms. Such imitation firearms, depending on their features, are subject to firearms legislation and are illegal. An amnesty was held in February this year to allow owners of the certain types of imitation firearms of concern to hand them into police stations so they can be disposed of safely.

Discussions were held with the authorities in Scotland about the imitation firearms of concern, including Police Scotland, the Scottish Police Authority, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS), and the Scottish Government, and I also wrote to the Lord Advocate about whether a similar scheme could be introduced in Scotland. We were advised that the operational and legal context in Scotland were different, and a public awareness campaign would be considered to support public safety in respect of these imitation firearms.

Tackling anti-social behaviour and the harm it causes is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission.

The police have a suite of powers available to them to tackle the illegal use of e-scooters, including in residential areas, and we expect police to deploy them appropriately.

The Crime and Policing Bill will give police greater powers to clamp down on anti-social behaviour involving vehicles including e-scooters, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before they are able to seize a vehicle. This will allow police to put an immediate stop to offending.

The Government also recently consulted on proposals to allow the police to dispose of seized vehicles more quickly, including e-bikes and privately owned e-scooters, which have been used anti-socially or illegally.

These combined measures will help tackle the scourge of e-bikes and e-scooters ridden anti-socially or illegally and will send a clear message to would-be offenders and local communities that this behaviour will not be tolerated.

Tackling anti-social behaviour and the harm it causes is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission.

The police have a suite of powers available to them to tackle the illegal use of e-scooters, including in residential areas, and we expect police to deploy them appropriately.

The Crime and Policing Bill will give police greater powers to clamp down on anti-social behaviour involving vehicles including e-scooters, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before they are able to seize a vehicle. This will allow police to put an immediate stop to offending.

The Government also recently consulted on proposals to allow the police to dispose of seized vehicles more quickly, including e-bikes and privately owned e-scooters, which have been used anti-socially or illegally.

These combined measures will help tackle the scourge of e-bikes and e-scooters ridden anti-socially or illegally and will send a clear message to would-be offenders and local communities that this behaviour will not be tolerated.

Excess speed remains a major cause of death and serious injury on our roads. Anyone who breaks the speed limit should expect to face sanction.

Current National Police Chiefs’ Council National Guidance on Speeding Enforcement advocates proportionality in applying the law and discretion to take account of the individual circumstances of each speeding offence and take the action they consider appropriate.

Enforcement measures range from informal advice, the offer of a speed awareness course or fixed penalty, and where speeding results in a fatality to court prosecution.

Tackling anti-social behaviour and the harm it causes is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission.

The police have a suite of powers available to them to tackle the illegal use of e-bikes and e-scooters and we expect police to deploy them appropriately.

The Crime and Policing Bill will give police greater powers to clamp down on anti-social behaviour involving vehicles including e-bikes and e-scooters, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before seizure. This will allow police to put an immediate stop to offending.

The Government also recently consulted on proposals to allow the police to dispose of seized vehicles quicker, including e-bikes and privately owned e-scooters, which have been used anti-socially or illegally.

These combined measures will help tackle the scourge of e-bikes and e-scooters ridden anti-socially or illegally and will send a clear message to would-be offenders and local communities that this behaviour will not be tolerated.

Enforcement of road traffic law, including in relation to the illegal use of e-bikes and e-scooters, are operational matter for Chief Constables in partnership with Police and Crime Commissioners who decide how to deploy available resources, taking into account any specific local problems and demands.

Any form of dangerous or inconsiderate driving behaviour is a serious issue. We expect all drivers to follow the rules of the road.

The Government is committed to improving road safety and reducing collisions across the country.

The Department for Transport are developing a Road Safety Strategy, the first in a decade, which will include a broad range of proposals, including for motoring offences which we intend to publish by the end of the year.

How the police enforce road traffic legislation and investigate road traffic collisions locally are operational matters for Chief Constables, in consultation with Police and Crime Commissioners.

Tackling criminality and anti-social behaviour is a top priority for this Government and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission to take back our streets.

Our Crime and Policing Bill will give the police greater powers to clamp down on all vehicles used for anti-social behaviour including street racing, with officers no longer required to issue a warning before seizing the vehicles.

The Government has also consulted on proposals to allow the police to dispose in quicker time of seized vehicles which have been used anti-socially and ridden without insurance or a driving licence.

Combined, these actions will help tackle the scourge of vehicles ridden anti-socially and illegally by sending a clear message to would be offenders and to communities that this behaviour will not be tolerated.